Loss
by breninblack
Summary: Through Draco's direction, Hary discovers a world layered above his own where Sirius is waiting for him. Can Harry find a way to bring Sirius and himself back to the real world? 7th Year DMHP RLSB. Rated M for Slash and Language.
1. I

**Loss**

_by Breninblack _

Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters, settings or names. They are merely my playthings. Please don't sue.

Author's Note: Heads up to anyone reading this story: there will be eventual Harry/Draco slash. Some people have an aversion to this particular pairing, so I'm warning you now. Also, this story takes place in Harry's sixth year. While I realize that the sixth book is already out, you must bear in mind that I wrote the bulk of the beginning of this story before it's release.

This story was inspired by Xylodemon's Harry/Draco fic entitled _Phoenix Song_. It is one of my favorite Draco/Harry fics of all time and I encourge those of the appropriate age to go check it out after they've finished reading and reviewing my story.

Please review! I love to get comments about how you think I could improve the story or just simply stating that you enjoy the story. It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

**.:one:.**

The wind roared and howled. There was something about this spot that made it much louder than any other place on the Hogwarts grounds. Maybe it was because it was surrounded by cliffs or maybe it was because of the sheer vertical drop onto the rocky shore of the lake. In any case, it was so loud you couldn't even hear yourself think. But that's what Harry liked about this place. You could come here and get lost in the slow rippling of the lake or the soft, unheard rustling of the trees. You could forget that the darkest, most evil wizard of all time was back and you could forget that in the end, it was either his life or yours. You could forget how that evil wizard was able to plant a dream in your head because you neglected to learn how to block it and you could forget how you took 5 of your closest friends into near-certain death because of it. And most of all, you could forget how your reluctance to learn from a disliked teacher ultimately led to death of the closest thing you had left to family.

He checked his watch and saw that breakfast was already half over. People would be wondering where he was soon and then they'd come looking for him. If they found him -- out where he was -- they'd never let him be alone again. He pulled his feet back up over the edge of the cliff from where they had been dangling, slowly stood up, brushed the dirt off himself and headed back to the castle. But now as he walked away from the noise and across the grounds, everything he had managed to forget back there came flooding back to him.

_Sirius._ It was all his fault. He had not been focused on Occlumency and, just as everyone had feared, Voldemort used the connection they shared to plant ideas in Harry's head. Harry had stupidly believed that Sirius was actually in the Ministry of Magic and he had gone off to rescue him, taking Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Luna and Neville with him. Once they got there, he'd realized it had all been a trap and that he had played his friends right into the hands of death. Dumbledore and the Order had to come and rescued them and that bitch Bellatrix had pushed Sirius into the veil. He had watched it all. It was burned into his memory for eternity. Every time it replayed -- usually in his dreams -- it got slower and slower and every time he cursed himself for not jumping out and catching his godfather. Even if he hadn't caught him, he would have at least fallen through with him.

He sighed as he reached the front steps of the castle and pulled open the front doors. He walked into the bustling Great Hall and found his seat at the Gryffindor table. Hermione smiled at him as he sat down and Ron patted him on the back.

It was only 3 weeks into the new term; 3 weeks into his sixth year at the only place he had ever really wanted to call home. But he was already tired of being here. Every where he looked he was reminded of Sirius and his mistakes in the Department of Mysteries. Right in front of him were the most obvious— Ginny, Ron, Hermione and Neville. He couldn't even go to the other houses for comfort, not that he would find much there anyway. Hufflepuff had the other obvious reminder, Luna, and there wasn't a day that went by that the Slytherin's didn't remind him of what he'd done. Especially Malfoy. He had gotten the first hand story from his father somehow and he rubbed it in Harry's face every chance he got. The staff wasn't much better. Those who weren't reassuring him that it wasn't his fault were tiptoeing around him like he was a bomb waiting to explode. But he knew better. It was his fault that the whole fiasco had happened, no matter what Dumbledore tried to tell him.

His thoughts were abruptly interrupted by Ron tugging at his shoulder.

'Harry? Harry...HARRY!' Ron shouted into his ear.

Harry angrily shoved him off. 'What!' he barked. He saw the hurt look on Ron's face and immediately felthorrible for yelling at him. 'Sorry, I didn't mean to shout.'

'It's okay, mate. Hermione and I were just trying to tell you that breakfast's over and you haven't even touched any food.'

'Why don't you grab some toast and you can eat it on the way to the match,' Hermione suggested.

'Oh my god! I'm not playing today, am I?' Harry asked. He hadn't thought there was a Gryffindor match today, but so many things had been slipping past him lately that he wouldn't have been terribly surprised if he had completely forgotten.

'Of course not! It's only Slytherin and Ravenclaw. I would be force feeding you the entire batch of eggs if you were playing. A seeker needs all the energy he can get,' Ron quipped. After the whole Umbridge thing had been settled and Harry had been allowed to play again, Ron had resigned as keeper and taken the position of official team strategist. He also liked to think of himself as Harry's personal trainer, managing what he ate on game days and scheduling practices at regular intervals so Harry wouldn't have the chance to get out of shape. Harry didn't mind it in the slightest — quidditch proved to be an excellent distraction from his own thoughts.

The three made their way out on to the grounds. As they passed the entrance to the changing rooms, the drawling blonde that was Malfoy appeared in front of them.

'We're playing Ravenclaw today, Potter, not you bloody Gryffindorks. Just thought you ought to know, in case you _dreamed _otherwise. Shame we aren't though, I do feel like kicking some arse today, and I'm sorry it won't be yours,' Malfoy said with a sneer.

Ron opened his mouth to speak, but Malfoy got there before him.

'Don't, Weasel. Just listening to you makes people dumber. I'd like to keep my intelligence, thanks.' And with that Malfoy stalked off onto the field.

'Someday, I'm going to pound his face in. Someday,' Ron said, shaking his fist in the air.

'Just ignore him,' Hermione said. 'Come on, let's go. We're going to miss half the game if we don't hurry up.'

They walked up into the stands and found three seats behind Seamus and Lavender. The game had indeed already started by the time they had gotten seated, but they hadn't missed much. An hour later, the only score was still the same and people were starting to get a little bored.

'Slytherin has strong offense, but certainly lacks in the defense department,' said Dean Thomas over the loud speaker. 'Luckily for them, Ravenclaw is exactly opposite: good defense, bad offense. Perhaps this is the reason for the stand still score of the last hour.'

'If someone doesn't score soon, I'm leaving,' Ron announced, as one of the Slytherin beaters chucked a bludger towards the nearest Ravenclaw.

'And Messer takes one in the arm for the team. Hope it doesn't damage his ability to keep chucking those bludgers,' Dean announced. 'Folks, the score is STILL 60 to 50, Slytherin's lead.'

Just then Ravenclaw's star beater Andrew Messer proved he certainly could still use his arm. From his position just above the Ravenclaw goal posts, he sent a perfectly aimed ball straight for Malfoy, who was hovering right in front of the Gryffindor stands. Messer's counterpart, a young lad by the name of Richards, sent the other bludger towards Malfoy from straight across the pitch. Malfoy had his back to the Ravenclaw goals, so he didn't see the two black balls speeding toward him and the wind this high up was too loud for him to hear the frantic screams of the Gryffindors trying to warn him.

It would have been quite a spectacular thing if it hadn't been so horrific. The two balls hit Malfoy at the exact same time, one coming from his right and the other coming up from behind. It sent Malfoy and a shower of blood into the Gryffindor stands, right on top of Harry and Seamus. Nearly everyone in the area backed away as Malfoy came hurtling toward them but Hermione, Harry and Seamus didn't move— they stayed to break his fall. Within seconds half of the faculty was in the Gryffindor stands, including Dumbledore, McGonagall, Snape and Madame Pomfery.

Harry took a look down at the limp body that was in his arms and immediately wished he hadn't. The normally silvery blonde hair was now a deep crimson color, stained by the blood. There was a long crack on in the boys skull, running along the back of his head and up to his cheekbone on one side. Blood was gushing out of the wound like Harry had never seen.

'Holy mother...' Seamus whispered as he looked down too.

Hermione looked down and just started to cry. 'Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god,' she whispered.

Then, thankfully, the boy was taken out of their arms and magicked onto a stretcher. Dumbledore looked grave, McGongall looked on the verge of tears and Madame Pomfery was shaking her head and muttering something about how quidditch was going to kill someone one of these days. Even Snape looked vaguely horrified. As soon as Madame Pomfery was moving away with the body, McGonagall was ushering her blood soaked students to follow her to the Infirmary.

By the time they got there, Hermione was shaking so bad that you might have thought there was a small earthquake happening had you sat down next to her on the hospital bed. Madame Pomfery had moved Draco to a bed at the end and was currently performing so many spells it was making Harry even more dizzy than he already was. McGonagall gave them some hospital pajamas to change into and led them to the bathroom where they could clean the blood off themselves. When Harry returned from the bathroom, he noticed that the smell of blood had become much more putrid. He sat down on a bed, trying to steady his head. But everything seemed to swirl and mix around him. His hearing was still intact, but his vision was beginning to fail him. The last thing he heard before he passed out was Madame Pomfery talking to Dumbledore.

'Albus, I don't think he's going to make it.'


	2. II

**Loss  
**_by Breninblack_

Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters, settings or names. They are merely my playthings. Please don't sue.

Author's Note: Heads up to anyone reading this story: there will be eventual Harry/Draco slash. Some people have an aversion to this particular pairing, so I'm warning you now. Also, this story takes place in Harry's sixth year. While I realize that the sixth book is already out, you must bear in mind that I wrote the bulk of the beginning of this story before it's release.

This story was inspired by Xylodemon's Harry/Draco fic entitled _Phoenix Song_. It is one of my favorite Draco/Harry fics of all time and I encourge those of the appropriate age to go check it out after they've finished reading and reviewing my story.

Please review! I love to get comments about how you think I could improve the story or just simply stating that you enjoy the story. It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

Chapter Note: I apologize for the shortness of this chapter. Does the fact that I'm uploading three at once make up for it?

**.:two:.**

Harry awoke some hours later. Everything in the hospital wing was silent. Seamus was gone, he must have already woken up or not even slept at all and Hermione was lacing up her shoes. At the foot of his bed were his clothes, all freshly laundered and free of bloodstains. He quickly changed, just before Madame Pomfery reentered the room.

'I'm glad to see at least someone's up,' she said sadly.

'Is he going to be okay?' Hermione asked. Harry was glad she had asked. He wasn't sure he felt comfortable voicing his concerns just yet.

'In all my years here, I have never seen a bludger do quite this much damage. They're inspecting the bludger now for magical tampering. Right now, the boys chances don't look very good. Quite bad, actually.' It was the first time Harry had ever thought he had seen tears in Madame Pomfery's eyes.

_It must be really bad, _Harry thought.

'Do his parents know? Why aren't they here?'

'That's the worst part. Owling them was the first thingthe Headmasterdid after leaving here. But they replied and said they were too busy. Your own son is dying and you're too busy to come see him? It's a shame. Though when he was here, Lucius never showed much interest in other people's well being... But that's nothing you children need to be worrying about. Hurry along now, I'm sure you'll want to get back to your friends.' She made a shooshing movement with her hands and the two Gryffindors left the infirmary.

'Can you imagine that? Your own family not coming to see you when you're on your death bed?' Hermione asked in disbelief.

'My family's dead, 'Mione.' His parents would never be able to come even if they had wanted to.

'I know, Harry, but if they were alive, could you imagine if they didn't come? You heard her. She said they owled back saying they were too busy. Who's too busy to see their kid when they've been hospitalized with fatal wounds?'

'Obviously the Malfoy's are.'

'I feel sort of bad for him. I know he's Malfoy and everything. And I know we're supposed to hate him and all, but I can't help feeling sorry. He's going to wake up—'

'If he wakes up.'

'—from this terrible accident—'

'If it was an accident.'

'Stop being so cynical! I know a lot of people hate Malfoy, but does anyone hate him enough to kill him?'

'Ron probably does.'

'Yes, but Ron's not on Ravenclaw's team. Anyway, I was saying it's going to be horrible for him to wake up from this terrible incident and there's going to be no one there. Imagine how bad he'll feel.'

'Why do you care so much about Malfoy?'

'The fact that it's Malfoy is beside the point! If it were anyone else I'd be just as concerned!'

'Even Voldemort?'

'Alright, so maybe not him. But do you honestly not feel the least bit bad about what happened?'

Harry sighed. 'I suppose I do. I guess it will be a little tragic that he's probably going to wake up to only Dumbledore and Pomfery.'

She was right though. He felt horrible about it, even though he hadn't had anything to do with the actual accident. All he had done was break Malfoy's fall. But he had seen it for himself – that crack was pretty vicious.

That evening in the common room nearly all of the 6th years were lounging around. The usual talk was talked— quidditch, complaining about homework, quidditch. They were all sitting around discussing quidditch when Ron started in about the match earlier that day.

'Did you see how they both hit him at the same time? That was bloody awesome!' Ron said enthusiastically.

Seamus and Harry quickly became quiet, but Hermione was outraged.

'Ron! How can you say that? Did you not see what happened?' she exclaimed.

'Well of course I saw what happened. I was right there!' Ron defended.

'I noticed you moved away real quick like when he came flying into the stands. How can you sit and talk about him when he's lying up there unconscious with a crack in his skull from ear to ear! His parents won't even come because they are too busy! How would you like that if your parents were too busy to see you, even if you were on your deathbed? I don't think you'd like it one bit.'

The whole room hushed. Immediately Hermione realized she had probably said too much. But what was done was done.

'Blimey, 'Mione, I didn't know he cracked his skull. I just thought there was a lot of blood. I didn't know his parents wouldn't come either. I'm sorry.'

'You should be! And don't even think about saying a word to him about it when he wakes, that would be just as bad!' Hermione said and she stalked off to her room.

During the first week that Malfoy was in a coma, no one was too worried. By the third week, people were starting to wonder. But by the time the fifth week rolled around Pansy Parkinson was in tears because 'the love of her life was dead and it was all because he had risked his life being the best seeker Hogwarts had ever seen'.

Everyone kind of felt bad about it, but Hermione, Seamus and Harry felt the worst. They had caught him, been there when he had been just barely awake. They had been the only students to see the actual damage and worst enemy or not, it was still upsetting.

But then one afternoon, after Transfiguration, a hush came over the hall as Harry was walking down it. Then the crowds of students suddenly parted. Through it came a very somber, very alone Draco Malfoy. Harry could see as he walked past, the large scar that tore across the pale boy's face. Malfoy shot a — meaningful? — glance towards Harry but walked away without a word.

Had Harry been old and had he had a bad heart, he probably would have gone into cardiac arrest right there in the corridor.

_i Breathe/i _he thought. There were several things wrong with this scene. Firstly, Draco Malfoy had walked past him without saying a word or even sending him a sneer. Secondly, Draco Malfoy had been alone. Thirdly, was that a glimmer of...what was that a glimmer of? There had been something in the look that Malfoy had given him that Harry couldn't quite place.

_Oh my god, I think the world is coming to end._

_But you already knew that, didn't you?_

He shook his head and walked on to his next class.


	3. III

**Loss  
**_by Breninblack_

Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters, settings or names. They are merely my playthings. Please don't sue.

Author's Note: Heads up to anyone reading this story: there will be eventual Harry/Draco slash. Some people have an aversion to this particular pairing, so I'm warning you now. Also, this story takes place in Harry's sixth year. While I realize that the sixth book is already out, you must bear in mind that I wrote the bulk of the beginning of this story before it's release.

This story was inspired by Xylodemon's Harry/Draco fic entitled _Phoenix Song_. It is one of my favorite Draco/Harry fics of all time and I encourge those of the appropriate age to go check it out after they've finished reading and reviewing my story.

Please review! I love to get comments about how you think I could improve the story or just simply stating that you enjoy the story. It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

Chapter Note: the third installment of _Loss._ Hope you enjoy! (don't forget to review!)

**.:three:. **

Harry walked down the hall under his invisibility cloak and towards the front doors. He had been having a particularly rough day. Things had been pleasant enough until Malfoy had come back. Now they were just weird and rather depressing in a way. Since his return back to school Malfoy had become quiet and reserved. He rarely talked to anyone, even his friends. During class he would only answer if called on and when paired with a partner worked silently and patiently. He hadn't rejoined the quidditch team and there wasn't any sign that he wanted to (though, to be truthful, there wasn't any sign that he didn't want to either – there really wasn't any sign of anything at all). Apparently his head injury had cost him a lot more than just his pretty face.

_Not that I think he's pretty or anything,_ Harry thought quickly. _It's just that seeing his normally pristine face all bloodied and crushed was a little unnerving._

But that wasn't the depressing part. It was actually kind of nice that Malfoy had become anti-social. There was no snide comments about dreaming and his mistakes. There was no mudblood talk (from Malfoy, at least). And there was no talk about the advantages of being rich. Not that Ron hadn't tried to start things with him, though. He had. Many times. And all to no avail. No, the depressing thing was that everyone was kind of glad that Malfoy was alive and though he did suppose a small part of him (a very small part, mind you) was glad he hadn't died, too, Harry couldn't help but ask why Malfoy got to live after all the things he had done to them and Sirius, who had to spend 12 years in Azkaban despite his innocence, had to die.

He knew it was selfish. He desperately wanted to block the thought out. Malfoy or not, he was still a human being and it wasn't fair to try and justify things like that. As he walked up to the cliffs he noticed a figure sitting against the walls of the back cliffs. The clouds shifted and the silvery hair of the figure shone in the moonlight.

Speak of the devil.

He walked over to Malfoy and stood there. Malfoy didn't say anything. He didn't even acknowledge that there was anyone standing there. He just kept looking out over the cliff.

'Malfoy? What are you doing here?' Harry asked incredulously.

There was no response. There was no movement. In fact it hardly seemed he was breathing. Harry squatted down so he was eye level with Malfoy.

'Malfoy? Are you alright?' Harry asked, this time a little more worried.

There was no movement at first. Then Malfoy turned his head slowly and Harry fell backwards on his arse in surprise. It wasn't the actual turning of his head that had made him jump. It was the fact that there was any movement at all. Malfoy looked at Harry and then turned his head back towards the cliff. Harry seated himself cross legged on the ground next to Malfoy.

'Malfoy? I asked you a question. Are you alright?'

Malfoy turned his head once again. 'Do I look alright to you, Potter? Do you see this scar on my face? Does it look alright? Or did you mean emotionally, because I'm not too well in that field either.'

'Sorry I asked.' Harry said, slightly put off. Of course, you got worried about Malfoy and he just turned around and bit your head off. They sat in silence for several minutes. Harry picked at the dirt on the ground underneath him until he realized Malfoy was staring at him.

'What?' he asked, locking eyes with the boy.

'I met your godfather.'

Harry nearly doubled over. _He met Sirius? Sirius is still alive?_

'You must have been the one dreaming this time, Malfoy. My godfather's dead,' Harry replied bitterly.

'No, he's not.'

'Yes, he is, Malfoy. You don't know what you're talking about. You weren't there. It wasn't your fault.' Harry hadn't meant to say the last part, but it just slipped.

'No. He's not dead. He's not alive either, but he's not dead.'

'What the hell are you on about, Malfoy?'

'I told you. I met him. Sirius Black, that's your godfather, right?'

'Yes, that's him. But how in hell did you meet him?' Harry knew this was absurd; there was no way that he could have met Sirius. But even so, it was like he had been in a box of blackness and suddenly someone had just poked a holethrough itand daylight was flooding in.

'It was something more like heaven. Or rather somewhere between heaven and earth. Not hell.'

'What the bloody hell are you talking about!' Harry demanded angrily. His hopes kept getting higher and higher and he was all the while sure it was just another trick Malfoy had up his sleeve.

'He told me that he misses you. He's tried to come back, but it never works. He said it's because he's got no body to come back to. He told me to tell you that he still loves you.'

Harry felt his eyes prickle with tears. He was not going to cry in front of Malfoy.

'Why should I believe you?' Despite what 5 years of putting up with bastard-Malfoy was telling him, there was something in Malfoy's voice that inclined Harry to think he was telling the truth.

'How would I know who your godfather is? Why would I bother making up a story like this? I've got better things to do with my time.'

'I don't know. You've gone out of your way in the past to get me in trouble or make my life miserable. Why should I think this is any different?'

'Because, Potter, I've given up on you. Everything I've ever known has been an illusion. Everything I've ever done has been in the name of something false. I've got no reason to go to all the trouble of keeping up my image anymore.'

'Is that why you've been so...civilized since you woke up?'

'Yes,' Malfoy said tersely.

'Why the sudden change of heart?'

'You sure do ask a lot of questions, don't you? Let's just say I met someone who turned everything I've known inside out and leave it at that.'

Harry wasn't sure what Malfoy was up to, but somehow he didn't think it was anything sinister. He had never seen Malfoy like this: subdued and not very malicious. They sat there, neither of them saying anything, and the night went on. Finally Malfoy got up and dusted off his robes.

'Evening, Potter,' he said, as he walked off back towards the castle, leaving Harry alone in the night.


	4. IV

**Loss**

_by Breninblack_

Disclaimer: All belongs to the ever-wonderful JKR.

Chapter Notes: Thanks to the one review I've gotten so far. It made me happy. .

**Chapter Four**

_There's a place where the sun breaks through_

_And the wind bites cold and hard_

_Stings my ears and_

_Tears my eyes_

_When the day starts to shout out loud_

_­--_"Above The Clouds," Cyndi Lauper

To anyone on the outside looking in, things didn't change much after that night on the cliffs. Malfoy didn't bait the trio anymore and he didn't talk to anyone. Harry, Hermione and Ron went about their lives like any other day.

But from where Harry was standing it was another story all together. He couldn't seem to get the conversation he had had with Malfoy out of his head. It kept nagging at him. The idea that Sirius was not entirely dead was something Harry had only dreamed of until then. It continued to plague him the entire week. By Sunday evening it was all he could think about and it was killing him.

He needed to clear his head.

He put on a pair of jeans and a warm shirt and scribbled a note on a spare bit of parchment:

_Hermione, I've gone to clear my head. I don't know when I'll be back. Don't wait up for me.-- Harry_

He left it on the door to her prefect's room and headed out to the cliff.

When he got there, he was glad to see that tonight he was alone. He hadn't come back since his meeting with Malfoy for fear of running into him again. He had a million questions for the blonde boy but he didn't think he could take the answers.

As he sat down on the edge of the cliff, his feet dangling off the end, the loud winds roared and chased all coherent thoughts from his head. He sat there for a long time, just staring out into the night. But as the night went on, the winds died and everything was deathly still. And slowly his thoughts began to return.

_Sirius..._

With tears in his eyes, Harry got up and stood with his toes over the edge of the cliff. He looked down at the rocky shore below him.

_Sirius..._

He looked up to the sky. With a sob, he let himself fall forward.


	5. V

**Loss**

_by Breninblack_

Disclaimer: All belongs to the ever-wonderful JKR.

Chapter Notes: No notes this time...

Chapter Five

The next morning as the staff and last few students were leaving the Great Hall from breakfast, Hermione and Ron came sprinting into the entrance hall.

'Miss Granger! Mr Weasley! 10 points for running in the halls!' barked Snape. But they didn't hear him; they just kept running.

Until they almost collided with Dumbledore.

'Miss Granger, Mr Weasley. Good morning. You shouldn't be running in the halls like that. You might run into someone,' he said.

'Dumbledore, sir, Harry's missing!' Hermione exclaimed breathlessly.

'He wasn't there this morning when I woke up and we looked everywhere for him!' Ron said.

'We've even checked the map!'

'Are you positive? He's no where in the castle? Have you checked to grounds?' Dumbledore asked.

'He's not on the quidditch pitch and Hagrid hasn't seen him,' Ron said. 'I don't know where else he could be.'

'He left me a note on my room last night, saying he needed to clear his head. But he didn't say where he was going,' Hermione added.

'We'll do a search of the grounds. I'll tell Hagrid to go out with Fluffy—'

'Excuse, Headmaster, sir. I didn't mean to overhear your conversation, but I think I might know where he is.' Hermione and Ron's jaws both dropped when Malfoy addressed the Headmaster.

'You git! What have you done with him!' Hermione yelled. Ron held her back from attacking Malfoy, though he had a mind to let her have at him.

'Miss Granger, dear, I think we should follow any lead, if it may help us find Mr Potter,' Dumbledore said calmly. He turned to Malfoy. 'Mr. Malfoy, would you lead the way?'

They walked out on to the grounds and as they walked Hermione and Ron were trying desperately to figure out where they were going and why Malfoy was the one leading them there. When they finally stopped walking, they had arrived at a cliff surrounded by more cliffs behind and the Forbidden Forest at the left. Hermione and Ron didn't recognize the place; _Hogwarts: A History_ had never mentioned any cliffs on the Hogwarts grounds. But where ever it was, it was empty. No Harry in sight.

'I'm sorry, sir,' Malfoy said. 'It was only a hunch.'

'Quite alright, Mr Malfoy.' Dumbledore walked around the area, as if he was studying it. Everyone was silent for a moment until a loud expletive could be heard from Ron.

'Fuck no,' he nearly shouted as he staggered back away from the cliff's edge. Hermione rushed forward, but he held out a hand to stop her. 'No, Hermione. You don't need to see that.'

Immediately Dumbledore was at the cliff's edge, peering down.

'Mr Malfoy, Mr Weasley, Miss Granger, I need you to go the castle and gather Professor Snape and Madame Pomfery. Tell them to come here immediately.' Dumbledore moved away from the cliff and began looking around the site once more. He found a jagged path at the edge of the cliffs and started down it.

Draco took one quick look over the edge of the cliff before they returned to the castle and was horrified by what he saw. On the ground in a large pool of red, some several hundred feet below, was Harry.

Draco broke out in a run. There was no time to spare; who knows how long he had been down there or how much blood he had lost. If he was even still...

_No. Don't even think that, _Draco thought.

'Hermione, you go find Madame Pomfery,' Ron instructed when the three of them arrived breathlessly at the castle. 'Malfoy and I will go get Snape.'

'Ron, would you please tell me what's going on? What's happened to Harry?' she asked.

'Not now, we've got to hurry,' he replied and sped off toward the dungeons, Malfoy at his heel.

Snape's classroom door was closed when they got to it, presumably because class was already in session. Malfoy paused a moment at the closed door and put his hand up to knock. But Ron got there first and shoved the door open.

'—infusion of wormwood—Mr Weasley, what in God's name do you think you are doing? I'm trying to teach a class! 50 points—'

'Professor, sir, Dumbledore needs you immediately. It's Harry.'

A mixed look of distaste and worry passed over the professor's face. 'Class dismissed,' he said and the students began to pack up their things. Snape walked over to Ron and Malfoy.

'What's going on? Has there been an attack?' he asked. The last thing he needed right now was a surprise Death Eater attack.

'No...I don't think so at least. We've found Harry at the bottom of a cliff. Dumbledore requested you to come immediately.'

'Trust Potter with the dramatics,' Snape said as he rolled his eyes. Ron scowled at him.

'Oh, come on!' Malfoy urged. Snape raised an eyebrow but didn't comment and they hurriedly walked down the corridor to the entrance hall, where they met Hermione and Madame Pomfery.

The five of them hurried out towards the cliff area. When they got there Malfoy showed them the ghastly sight at the bottom of the cliff and then pointed them in the direction of the path that Dumbledore had gone down.

As Hermione watched everything, it finally dawned on her what had happened. She rushed to the edge. Before Ron could stop her she peered down and there was stifled cry.

'Oh my god, Ron, this is all my fault! I wasn't paying him enough attention!' she cried.

'This is not your fault,' Ron tried to comfort her.

'Should have seen this coming,' Malfoy muttered to himself. Unfortunately, Hermione overheard him.

'What do you know? Harry hates you!' Hermione scowled.

'He may have hated me, but that doesn't mean all the signs weren't there. I just...didn't see them.' The minute after the words left his mouth, he regretted letting that last confession slip. It was more than Granger and Weasley needed to know.

'What, have you been stalking him?'

'It was painfully obvious to anyone who's not blind, deaf and mute that the boy had some serious unresolved grief,' Malfoy said quickly to rectify his slip of tongue. 'The fact that no one took it seriously is sort of surprising. I guess Gryffindor's Golden Boy isn't so important after all.'

Hermione was so enraged she could do nothing but sit there and shake. Ron, however, was finding it increasingly difficult not to go over and deck that sodding self-righteous bastard a good one. But he remained where he was and sent Malfoy a vicious glare instead.

Ten minutes later the teachers came up the path, Dumbledore first, followed by Madame Pomfery then Snape. They had magicked Harry on a stretcher in front of them. Hermione immediately rushed up to his side.

'Oh Harry!' was all she could manage before breaking into uncontrollable sobs. Madame Pomfery led Harry straight up to the infirmary when they reached the castle, Dumbledore, Ron, Hermione and Draco in tow, and Snape returned to the dungeons.

In the infirmary, the only things audible were the sobs of Hermione and the whisperings of Madame Pomfery while she worked. Dumbledore, Ron and Draco stood by silently watching. Ron was dumbfounded and it clearly showed. He was so confused as to why Harry would attempt at his life. It just seemed so...unexpected. He had known Harry had been beating himself up over the whole Department of Mysteries deal, but everyone had come out okay in the end, except for Sirius. He hadn't thought it was this bad.

Draco, too, was quite troubled and it was unintentionally evident. Unlike Ron, Draco had a good idea as to why Harry would do something like this and he felt completely and totally responsible. He hadn't meant anything by it, telling Harry about the other world he had visited and meeting Sirius, except that he wanted to pass along Sirius' message. He wouldn't have told Harry anything if he had known Harry would go jump off a cliff because of it. Draco had never lost anyone – that he had known of at the time – so he could only imagine that it must be hard on a person. He ran his finger up and down along the scar left on his face in a rare display of nervousness. His eyes flicked to Dumbledore, who was looking characteristically blank, then to Ron, who was looking rather confused and then to Hermione. It only took a few seconds to realize that she had been staring at him and was looking very angry. With no warning, she leapt at him, screaming.

'What have you done to Harry! What have you done!' she screamed. 'I'll kill you if you did this! Just because you hated him didn't mean you had to make him kill himself! How could you! Your sick, Draco Malfoy! Sick! You're worse than your father!'

Draco, who had been doing nothing to defend himself as Hermione attacked, paled at the mention of his father.

'Now, Miss Granger, I think it is important that you calm down,' Dumbledore said calmly. 'I do not think you would like to serve your first detention for attacking another student, would you? Perhaps it would be a good idea if you and Mr. Weasley returned to your room and rest for a bit, have a lie-down. I'm dismissing you from the days classes.'

Hermione stopped struggling against Ron and collapsed into his arms, crying again. Ron started to help her towards the door.

'And Mr. Weasley? I should like to speak with you two later on. Does 11 o'clock sound reasonable?' Dumbledore added as they were at the door.

Ron nodded and they left the hospital wing. Dumbledore turned to Draco.

'Mr. Malfoy, I should like to speak to you too. But it seems that at the moment you too are quite shaken. I should like you to go to my office and wait for me there. I have a few things to tend to yet. I should be there in a half hour's time. The password is Jelly Belly.'

Draco walked numbly to the door and slowly made his way to the Headmaster's office.

Inside the Infirmary, Albus Dumbledore looked down sadly at the comatose boy and whispered so quiet it was barely audible: 'I do hope you haven't given up on us yet, dear boy.'


	6. VI: The Shape That I Found You In

**Loss**

_by Brenda Peters_

Disclaimer: All belongs to the ever-wonderful JKR.

Chapter Notes: Enjoy the chapter!

**Chapter Six: The Shape That I Found You In**

Harry sat on a large rock, his legs pulled up to his body and his arms wrapped around them. He was looking at his own body lying motionless on the ground, blood seeping from an unseen crack in the back of his head.

_This must be what Malfoy was talking about,_ he thought. He could see his body lying there on the ground, yet here he was, sitting on a large boulder not 10 feet from it. He looked down at his hands. They looked solid enough, though he noticed there was almost this silvery glow to them.

There was a commotion from the cliff edge above him. He looked up to see Ron's head peering over the edge of the cliff, then followed by Dumbledore's. It was about time. It had still been dark when he had jumped. There had been a short period of null void where he had worried that he had just thrown away his life and died, but then he sort of woke up, if that's what you could call it, sitting on this rock around dawn. But, he supposed, he should be grateful they noticed at all. Hermione and Ron must have realized his absence at breakfast and then alerted Dumbledore.

Speaking of Dumbledore, he was now coming down a little worn path along the side of the cliff. He stood and looked at Harry's limp bloody body. There was very sad, melancholic look in Dumbledore's eyes and Harry felt a sudden pang of guilt about what he had done. He hadn't even thought about how this would make any of his friends feel. But he had to see Sirius; he had to help him find a way back.

Now Madame Pomfery was coming down the beaten path, looking quite worried. Following her was...Snape!

_Why in God's name is he here?_ Harry thought. _What does he care about my well being?_

Madame Pomfery gasped and clamped her hand over her mouth when she saw Harry's body. Snape said nothing, but wore a shocked expression that was new to Harry.

'Albus, what happened?' Madame Pomfery breathed.

'It's unclear, but it seems he has attempted to take his own life.'

'Why?' Snape was speaking in a sort of strangled tone that was also something Harry had never witnessed of his Potions Teacher.

'That,' Dumbledore paused briefly, 'is unclear as well. I fear we may have over estimated Mr. Potter's coping mechanisms.'

'Coping? Coping with what? That whole fiasco at the Ministry?' Pomfery asked.

Dumbledore nodded. 'Harry suffered a loss at the Ministry that can never be replaced.'

Harry scoffed. He would find a way. He would bring Sirius back.

'It seems he is still alive, but barely. There may be hope for him still,' Snape added.

Instantly Madame Pomfery began magicking a stretcher and lifting Harry's body onto it. Harry sat for a moment looking at the pool of blood still left on the ground. It wasn't until he heard voices at the top of the hill did he break his reverie.

On top of the cliff and heading back towards the castle, Madame Pomfery, Snape and Dumbledore were joined by a sobbing Hermione and a rather dazed looking Ron and, much to Harry's surprise, a somber looking Draco Malfoy.

_He must have been the one who knew I'd be here,_ he thought.

When they reached the castle, Snape left them to return to the dungeons in time for his next class and the rest of the party headed up to the hospital wing. Upon arrival, Madame Pomfery laid his body down on a bed and quickly began her work. Dumbledore, Malfoy, Ron and Hermione stood quietly observing him. Then suddenly Hermione burst out towards Draco, screaming at him.

'What have you done to Harry! What have you done!' She leapt on top of him in an attempt to tackle him to the ground and he made little effort to stop her. 'I'll kill you if you did this! Just because you hate him didn't mean you had to make him kill himself! How could you! Your sick, Draco Malfoy! Sick! You're worse than your father!'

Draco, Harry noticed, stopped moving at Hermione's last comment.

_That's odd, _Harry thought,_ I thought he wanted to be like his father. _

Ron finally succeeded in restraining Hermione and Dumbledore said a few words to them and dismissed them to take the day off. Then he turned to Draco and asked him to go wait in his office. Draco walked slowly to the door and left. Dumbledore lingered only a moment longer and just before he left, he whispered 'I do hope you haven't given up on us yet, dear boy.'

Harry sat down on a spare bed at the end of the room. He noticed that as he sat down that the sheets didn't shift under his weight and sighed. There were a lot of things he needed to sort out. Like what he was going to do next. He wanted to follow Dumbledore and Malfoy and he also wanted to follow Hermione and Ron, but he had come here on a mission and he didn't know how long he had. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He had no idea where Sirius might be dwelling but he guessed Grimmauld Place was as good as any place to start looking.

He opened his eyes and he looked around wildly in confusion. He was no longer on a bed in the Hospital Wing of Hogwarts. He was in the parlor of Grimmauld Place, sitting on the dusty grey chaise lounge. He took a moment to adjust to his surroundings before getting up to explore. When he came to the kitchen he heard voices speaking. He wanted to go in but the door was shut and he knew that whoever it was in there, they surely wouldn't want him barging in like that.

Then Kreacher came bumbling through the door and Harry made a move to get through it, but he was about two seconds too late. Instead of slipping through the open doorway while the door was still open, he slipped through the door as it swung close. He took a quick look around the room to find that it was empty. Kreacher must have been talking to himself again. He turned back to the door he had just come through. It was still swinging slightly on it's hinges. He tentatively reached out a hand and pushed the door. Or at least he had meant to push the door. Instead of his hand meeting solid door, it passed right through the wood. He yanked his hand back and tried it with his foot.

Straight through. _That can't be right, _he thought.

Slowly he moved the rest of his body through the door. There he was in the hall again, the door behind him still as death.

Kreacher was at the end of the hall, shoving some of the candlesticks into his petty excuse of clothing. Harry thundered down the hall to Kreacher and danced around nosily in front of Kreacher. Or at least he tried to thunder down the hall and dance nosily. It was apparent that Kreacher could not only not hear him, but he couldn't see him as well.

He closed his eyes and imagined the second floor of the Black house. When he opened his eyes again, low and behold, there he was on the second story of the Black house. Cool, Harry thought. Harry started at one end of the hall and moved down, sticking his head through each door to peek at it's occupants. All of the rooms were empty, except for the second one to the end closest to the stairs. Inside, sitting on small red couch reading a book, was Remus Lupin. Harry almost bound up to him like a puppy dog does to it's owner, but remembered that it wouldn't be noticed anyway. He sat down next to Remus and peered at the book he was reading. Death Veils: What Are They and How Do They Work was printed in a neat silvery script on the front and spine of the rather skinny book. On the coffee table in front of them was a pile of similar books, including Death and How To Cheat It, The After-Life Experience, Famous Veils in History and one huge tome simply titled Death. Harry was touched. So he wasn't the only one on a mission to bring Sirius back.

'Harry?'

The voice sort of muffled, as if you were hearing it over a telephone, but Harry's heart began to flutter immediately. He slowly turned around to face none other than Sirius Black.


	7. VII: Nobody's Fault But Mine

**Loss**

_by Breninblack_

Disclaimer: All belongs to the ever-wonderful JKR.

Chapter Notes: Thank you to all the wonderful people who reviewed! I love you so much! All...five of you! Thank you! (Comments to reviewers are at the end.)

I don't know if I've mentioned it before, but this story is inspired by a scene in Xylodemon's H/D fic _Phoenix Song_. If you haven't read it before, you should SERIOUSlY check it out. It is probably my favorite fic ever.

**Chapter Seven**

Draco walked numbly towards Dumbledore's office. Along the way he ran into Pansy, who immediately latched onto his arm and began to coo at him. He shrugged her off forcibly and she scampered away looking extremely put off. When he arrived at the Gargoyle, he muttered the password, walked up the stairs and through the wooden door. He had only been in Dumbledore's office once before and that time had been brief. However, the office remained the same as he had last seen it, except for the two large arm chairs seated on either side of Dumbledore's desk. Draco plopped into the blue chair in front of the desk.

This was all his fault, really. If he had been paying attention during that quidditch match, he would have seen those bludgers coming and he would have not been hit, and he wouldn't have gone into a coma and he wouldn't have met Sirius or have ever found out about the horrible thing his father had done or about Srren. He wouldn't have ever had told Harry about the other place because he wouldn't have known about it.

Then he remembered what Hermione had said, up in the hospital wing. You're worse than your father. Was he that bad? Was he really worse than his father? Right about now, Harry's little stunt didn't seem like all that bad an idea. Dumbledore would be here soon and surely it wouldn't take that long to talk to him. He'd be out of here in an hour tops. Chances are he'd get the day off classes too . . . he could just go back to the cliff and no one would notice he was gone until tomorrow in classes, at the earliest.

Just then Dumbledore came into the room. He walked swiftly over to the desk and took a seat in the green plush chair behind the desk, across from Draco. He laced his fingers together and let his elbows rest on the arms of the chair. After a few moments of regarding Draco, he finally spoke.

'Mr. Malfoy, I assume you know why I have brought you up here?'

Draco nodded.

'Would you care to explain what happened?'

Draco shook his head.

'Mr. Malfoy, I'm afraid that it most necessary that you tell me what happened. The life of a student is at stake here and I need to know what exactly happened to him. I would appreciate it if you told me what you know.'

Draco bit his lip. He knew if he allowed himself to say one word everything would come pouring out. All the instincts instilled in him as a child told him that confiding in this muggle loving fool was a bad idea.

'It's my fault, sir. If I hadn'tve said anything, Potter probably wouldn't have jumped.'

'Why do you say that?'

'I was showing off during that quidditch match and I didn't see those bludgers coming. While I was asleep, my soul was separated from my body. I met my brother, Srren, and Sirius, Potter's godfather. When I woke up, I met Potter at the cliffs - on accident - and I passed along a message from his godfather. He must have jumped because he thought he could reach Sirius.'

'Do you think he could?' Dumbledore asked.

'Well, I suppose so. From what I learned from my brother it seems that all you have to do is induce a coma. In theory, your body and soul will separate and you'd be free to roam with the other spirits.'

Dumbledore remained silent for a moment, looking blank except for the slight glint in his eye. 'I remember your brother Srren. He attended Hogwarts, however the summer afterwards, he disappeared without a trace. No one has seen hide nor hair of him since.'

Draco wondered what the point of that statement was. Did the Headmaster not know what had happened? Had he really believed it was an accident like everyone said it was? 'Do you not know what happened to him, sir?'

Dumbledore shook his head. 'No, I'm afraid I don't. Your father was, and still is, a very powerful man. He claimed that his son Srren had gotten lost during a stay at his Grandmother's after he graduated. They appeared to be quite distraught and claimed to have organized a search party to go out and look for him and no one was in a position to argue. I myself did not buy the story, after all Srren was a very smart young man and he would not go and get himself lost while exploring the countryside. But after months of seeking for him to no avail, they called the search off and asked that no one speak of him, on the grounds that Narcissa was quite fragile about the whole situation. I believe after you were old enough to understand what was going on around you, they began denying his existence all together.'

'That's pretty much exactly what Srren said. They made up this huge, elaborate story about how he got lost in the woods at our Grandmother's house and how they were so very upset about it. But there wasn't a search party like they said. There wasn't any attempt to bring him back from wherever he had gone because my father was the one who put him there.'

'That, in particular, is what I am so curious about.'

'Well, you know that veil that's now property of the Department of Mysteries?'

'Indeed.'

'Before it was there, it was in my father's house. It was something that the Dark Lord had made for himself. However, he had no where to keep it – the Riddle Manor was not somewhere to keep things of such great value where they could be easily stolen. So the Dark Lord had my father store it for safe keeping.

'When the Dark Lord wished for Srren to be marked, Srren refused. They got into a row about it and it led to my father body-binding Srren and pushing him through the veil. Srren's been stuck there ever since. He seems to think there's a way back; he said all the other spirits talked about it.'

'This is all very interesting. I would like to thank you, Mr. Malfoy, for sharing this information with me.'

Draco nodded.

'Very well, you can return to your house, if you'd like. If you remember anything else, feel free to share it with me. I'm giving you the rest of the day off in light of the recent tragedy. Use it wisely.'

'Yes, sir,' Draco said as he rose and walked to the door.

'And Draco?' Dumbledore called out. 'Remember, It wasn't your fault.'

€€€€€

There he was. He looked just like Harry had remembered him. His scraggly hair hanging over his shoulders. His worn black pants and shirt. Harry couldn't believe it. There he was. It hurt so much. He was afraid he was dreaming or something and that he wasn't really looking at his godfather, that his godfather wasn't really there. Harry could feel the tears running down his face but he didn't care. He ran up to his godfather and gave him a long hug.

'Harry, what are you doing here?'

'To see you, of course!'

'But why?'

'Aren't you glad to see me?'

'I'm always glad to see you! But you're here, which means . . . Harry, what have you done?'

Harry frowned. 'I thought you'd be happy to see me.'

'Harry, of course I'm happy to see you! I'm always happy to see you! I watch you all the time, though I suppose you don't know I'm there. But, Harry, this isn't the real world . . . this is . . . another place entirely. You'd have to be disconnected from your body to be here. I'm not that important.'

'Yes you are.'

'No, Harry. I am not worth risking your life over.'

'I can go back if I want. Malfoy did.'

'Oh. So you talked to Draco, eh?'

'Yeah. He told me what you said and I missed you so much and I wanted to see you again.'

Sirius sat down on the couch. 'I didn't think that you'd try to . . . How 'd you do it?'

'What? Get here? Jumped off a cliff.'

'What? Harry, are you crazy?' Sirius exclaimed.

'How else was I supposed to do it?'

Sirius went thoughtful for a moment. 'I suppose you're right.'

'I came here for a reason though. Other than just to see you again.'

'Oh? What's that?'

'I'm going to find a way to bring you back,' Harry said, quite pleased with himself.

'Come sit down,' Sirius said as he patted the couch next to him. 'Harry, I'm sorry but there isn't a way to do that. I'm stuck here.'

'But Draco came back, so you should be able to come back too!'

'Draco had a body to come back to. I lost mine when I went through the veil.'

'What?'

'When you go through a veil, Harry, your body and your soul separate. That's how you end up here. This is where lost souls go. I don't know what happens to your body once you lose it, but I haven't been able to find mine. Draco got knocked unconscious by those bludgers and the impact separated his body and soul. But the Headmaster and Madame Pomfery collected his body before anything could happen to it and took care of it. That's how he was able to go back and that's how you're going to go back.'

'Are you trying to tell me you've just given up? You're just going to stop trying? Come on, Sirius, don't you want to come back? I bet Remus here misses you something fierce! Look, even he's doing research!'

'Harry, I've looked a thousand times and a thousand times more. I've never found anything indicating how you can come back.'

'I need to go find Draco,' Harry said abruptly. He closed his eyes and pictured Draco.

When he opened his eyes again, it took him a minute to recognize his surroundings. He hadn't thought of a specific place, he had only thought of Draco and he wasn't sure if would work. But here he was, in Dumbledore's office and he could hear two voices — Dumbledore's and Draco's. He walked over to the desk at which they sat and listened to the conversation.

.'I remember your brother Srren,' said Dumbledore. 'He attended Hogwarts, however the summer afterwards, he disappeared without a trace. No one has seen hide nor hair of him since.'

'Do you not know what happened to him, sir?'

Harry listened as Draco explained about his brother. He had always assumed that Draco's arrogance was due in part to his status as an only child. In a way, it still was, considering that Draco had never met this Srren character until now.

'Well, you know that veil that's now property of the Department of Mysteries?' Draco was saying.

'Indeed,' replied Dumbledore.

'Before it was there, it was in my father's house. It was something that the Dark Lord had made for himself. However, he had no where to keep it – the Riddle Manor was not somewhere to keep things of such great value where they could be easily stolen. So the Dark Lord had my father store it for safe keeping.

'When the Dark Lord wished for Srren to be marked, Srren refused. They got into a row about it and it led to my father body-binding Srren and pushing him through the veil. Srren's been stuck there ever since. He seems to think there's a way back; he said all the other spirits talked about it.'

That was it! Harry punched the air in excitement. All he needed to do now was to get to Malfoy Manor.

**A/N: **So there it is! Another chapter. The reason I was able to upload so fast is because I have up to roughly chapter eight 1/2 already written, so it's merely a matter of going through and doing some editing, adding and rewriting (though not necessarily in that order). I hope you enjoyed it!

Notes to my reviewers:  
**CommaSplice: **Thanks again for that note! I love you lots for taking the time to write all that!  
**Apple2: **I'm glad you like the story! I will definitely keep writing.  
**I-am-not-a-flower:** I love your s/n! Is it referencing something, or did you just come up with it yourself? Thanks for the comment!  
**Volleypickle16:** Sorry I didn't reply to your comment sooner! Thanks for taking the time to review.  
**JitsaruJakara:** Your comment made me laugh out loud and the people around me were all looking at me funnily. . I will definitely keep updating if only so I don't have to attend your funeral and so I can keep getting great comments from you. As for your question: I don't know much of anything about astral planes, however will definitely be looking into it. Who knows, it may even make it into the story!

Thanks again to everyone who reviewed! It's tremendous motivation to keep writing when I know that people actually enjoy my work!

**Next Chapter:** Harry goes looking for Malfoy Manor and ends up in a field.


	8. VIII: Too Many Creeps

**Loss**

_by Breninblack_

Disclaimer: All belongs to the ever-wonderful JKR.

Chapter Notes: Yay! Another chapter! And so quickly! My, how _does_ she do it? (She has no life, that's how.) Enjoy the chapter! I hope it's good enough!

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++  
**Chapter Eight: Too Many Creeps**

Remus Lupin sat in the little makeshift library annexed off his own bedroom of Grimmauld Place. He had been reading since he woke up at 6 o'clock this morning. As a matter of fact, he was still in his night clothes. But it wasn't like it made a difference. No one ever showed up at the Black House during the middle of a weekday. Except Dumbledore, but he had seen him in states far worse than this.

Remus sighed and looked at the various books strewed around him. There was one in his lap, a few on the couch and one lying on the floor. The books on the couch were titled _Death And How To Cheat It_, _The Afterlife Experience _and _Famous Veils in History_. He had already looked through those to no avail. Famous Veils in History had been useless, as it had told him very little about Death Veils. It had a mere paragraph on the subject:

_Death Veils are a recent discovery, the first recorded creation occurring in 1557. They are widely considered a Dark Art, probably due to the fact that little is known about them. Many a valiant wizard has tried to study them but there isn't much to study without going through the veil itself. It appears that when those wizards went through the veil they died, thus being incapable of finishing any research they had started. _

The _Afterlife Experience_ turned out to be a very unhelpful, too. It had been written by a ghost, who had dictated it to a still breathing wizard. It was apparently unaware that such things as Death Veils even existed. _Death And How To Cheat It _had more or less said the same thing as _Famous Veils in History;_ many have tried to study the veils, none have succeeded because they all decided to go through the veil.

The huge book on the floor was simply called _Death_. It had to be more than 5,000 pages. He had performed a simple searching spell on the book to pick out any selections concerning veils and read through them all. Surprisingly enough, there was little on the subject and none of it was anything he didn't already know. It had given him a little more about the inventor of the first Death Veil, but that person was long dead and the craft apparently gone with him.

He had at this for weeks, scouring the Hogwarts Library (through owl with Madame Pince) and the National British Wizarding Library for books on the subject. He had even gone so far as to visit a muggle library and search their weird computer things and what the librarian had called the Internet. He had put ads in both the Daily Prophet and the Quibbler inquiring about veils and such and he had gotten very few replies. However, one owl from a Daily Prophet reader had led him to the book he currently held. It had come with a standard issue post owl and a note saying, 'I hope this helps.' There had been no name or return address, but Remus was grateful anyway. The book itself was a rather skinny book. It was brown and ragged and on the front in silvery script _Death Veils: What They Are And How They Work _was written.

He had perused the book briefly the other day, but before he got very far he had to leave the room. There had been a sudden change in the energy of the room that had been quite overwhelming. You never knew what kind of spirits and ghouls lurked in the Black House. He had to admit that sometimes it kind of freaked him out.

Half an hour later, Remus shut the book and put it down. _Death Veils: What They Are And How They Work _felt more like a term paper then a book, yet it was still more information than he'd found anywhere else. The story went something like this:

In 1523, there had been a powerful, but unknown, wizard named Wolfgang de Gauss was looking for a way to separate body and soul. He learned this was possible after an overdose of a primitive form of what is now known as LSD that put him in a coma. He liked the spirit world so much that when he woke up he was determined to go back. After some near fatal experiments, he managed to master the transition between the spirit world and the physical world. But in his later years he found it too troubling to get so high that he became comatose, so he began looking for other ways to visit the spirit world. In 1557 he succeeded in creating the first Death Veil. In the weeks leading up to the unveiling of the veil, de Guass was touted as the most innovative inventors of his time. However, when the public saw the veil in action, they were revolted. What they saw was a device that allowed someone to kill a person with no trace of the body. They immediately wrote him off as a dark wizard and exiled him. By the time of his death in 1569, de Guass had yet to discover what exactly happened to one's body after one went through the veil. Because of his exile, de Guass never had an apprentice and the craft of Death Veils seems to have died with him.

Remus sighed. 1557. That was a long time ago. If the veil in the Department of Mysteries was the same veil that Wolfgang de Guass had created all those years back, it would have to be over 500 years old and, according to the book, made of mahogany. If he remembered correctly, the veil in the Department of Mysteries was made of grey stone. Which could only mean one thing: someone else knew how to make Death Veils.

€€€€€

Find that Søren character, it turned out, was easier said than done. With Grimmauld Place and Malfoy, it had been easy because he was familiar with the both of them. Søren, however, was someone he had never met and heard virtually nothing about, which made it impossible for Harry to locate him.

The first try had landed him on a dry dusty red dirt road. He had a sneaking suspicion that he wasn't in England any more (he had read about a place like this, some place called Kansas). Over the next hour, he saw more sights than Hermione could ever hope to read about, but he was still nowhere closer to finding the Malfoy Manor.

He knew he could just ask Sirius. Sirius would probably know who he was after talking to Draco. Even if he didn't he probably knew how he could find him. But that was not an option at the moment. He was still sort of pissed at Sirius about having given up on finding a way back.

He gave it one more try, closing his eyes and trying to focus on the Malfoy Manor. He felt a strange whirring sensation and then everything was calm. He waited a moment before opening his eyes, desperately hoping that once he opened them he would be in standing in front of the no doubt grand manor that belonged to the Malfoy's.

Very slowly, Harry opened one eye and then the other. He wasn't sure where he was, but he was pretty sure it wasn't the Malfoy estate.

He was standing in a bright green field. Tall green grass speckled with tiny white flowers surrounded him. Off to his right, there was a small dilapidated house, standing in ruins among the shiny grass.

Great. Another strikeout. At the rate he was going he was never going to find Srren. It looked like he was going to have to swallow his pride and go talk to Sirius.

Just as he was about to leave, something in his peripheral vision moved. He spun around and looked in the direction of the movement.

The house. There was someone in the house.

Harry quietly waded through the knee-deep grass until he was pressed flat against the house. He peered around the corner and saw that there was a window and a door that both looked as if they hadn't been opened in years.

Harry whipped around the corner and peered into the window. He was so surprised by what he saw that he forgot he was trying to be stealthy and let out an audible gasp.

Inside the ruined house was the nicest looking parlor Harry had ever seen. It was a small room, slightly bigger than his room at the Dursley's, but certainly not as big as his room at Grimmauld Place. There was a hearth at one end of the room and to wingback chairs in front of it. The floor was covered by a large red Persian rug and the walls were papered with a beautiful royal purple motif. There were gaslights that lined the walls and a small lamp that sat on a table between the two chairs. In the middle of the room sat a large table with four chairs, two of them covered with books and papers, just like the table.

'Can I help you, young man?' came a voice from behind. Harry jumped a clear three feet off the ground and stumbled backward into the voice. He and the voice crashed into the ground with a muffled thud.

'Oh my. A little jumpy, aren't we?' said the voice, which, Harry now saw, belonged to a short, curiously dressed elderly man. He wore a pale pink polo shirt underneath a bright lilac sweater vest and neon green trousers that came rode up half way up his calf.

'You frightened me!' Harry said.

'It was you who frightened me first, my dear boy. Now I ask again, is there something I can help you with?'

'Uh, no. I was just about to leave anyway. Sorry to have bothered you.' Harry quickly tried to excuse himself from the old man's presence, but the old man caught him by the arm.

'Nonsense. It's not often that I get visitors,' said the old man, dragging him forcibly inside the house. 'You might as well stay since you're already here. It's not like you've got anything else better to do. Come on inside.'

Inside the house, it is warm. It really felt like a home, like a place where somebody _lived_. It had a feeling that the Dursley's house had never had. The old man sat down in one of the wingbacks and directed Harry to do the same.

'So, boy, what's your name?' the old man asked.

'Harry.'

'Does Harry have a last name?'

'Potter.'

'Potter. Hmm. That's decent. Good enough. How old are you?'

'Seventeen,' Harry said unsurely. This was all very strange. Why this man was interrogating him, he could only guess. But it couldn't hurt, could it?

'Good. Good,' the man said, rubbing his hands together. 'About my age when I first did it.'

Harry sat there, horrified. Clearly, he was speaking with a deranged old man and clearly, he needed to get out of here. Fast.

'How would you say your health is? Good? Fair? Bad? You look fit. Mighty fit indeed, if I do say so myself. Tell me, what do you do for sport?'

'I, uh, am going to be late for class,' Harry said lamely.

'No, you're not. If you were able to go to class, you wouldn't be here, laddie. Now about your sport.'

Harry was just about to answer when a tall man appeared on the other side of the room.

'I couldn't find that last book on the lis--' He stopped short of putting his tall stack of books on the already crowded table when he saw Harry standing in front of his chair. 'Oh, I see you have a guest, dear. You haven't been frightening him now, have you, Gus? That's quite rude, you know.'

Harry was complete confused and more than a little weirded out. What was this guy doing with all those books? Why was the young man calling the old creep dear? Why did the young, blonde man seem familiar, so much so that the old man didn't seem so creepy anymore?

'I found this one lurking around outside, I did. He's ezactly what we're looking for, ain't he?'

'Forgive him,' said the younger man. 'He gets a bit excitable when we have guests, which, I must admit, is not often. However, it's a pleasure to have you.'

There was something about the way this man held himself with such grandeur that Harry could not identify. It was staring him in the face and yet he still couldn't put a finger on it.

'I would offer you some tea, however we have no kitchen, as you can see. And, alas, I fear it would be quite unavailing for us spirits in any matter. But do sit down.'

Harry cautiously sat back down in the wingback, while the young man crossed the room to grab a free chair from the table.

'May I be so intrusive as to ask your name?' asked the young man, as he carried the chair across the room.

'It's not intrusive to ask, really . . . ' Harry started, but the old man cut him off.

'His name's Harry. Harry Potter. Idn't it, boy?'

The young man set the chair down quietly, regarding the young wizard that sat in his home. 'So you're Harry, eh?'

'Last time I checked, yes.'

'I should have hoped I wouldn't have gotten to meet you this way. But I guess there's nothing for it now, is there?'

'What are you talking about?'

'Forgive me for not introducing myself,' said the young man, shaking his head and extending his hand. 'I'm Søren Malfoy.'

**A/N:** Ooh, so exciting! We get to meet Søren! Hooray! Okay, so maybe it's not that exciting for you because you don't know what's going to happen, but let me tell you this: Srren is a _very_ good thing, as far as H/D goodness goes. Hope you enjoyed the chapter! Don't forget to review!

To my loverly reviewers:  
**i-am-not-a-flower: **That's awesome that the name stuck. I wish I had a cool name like that. I sort of do, but Bren really isn't all that exciting. Glad you liked the chapter!  
**Beth Weasley: **I figured that, considering I am uploading/writing this several years/books too late, that many other people before me have written Sirius back into the stories. But I always wanted a way to prove that yes, he did go through the veil, but no, he's not dead. I am a **FIRM **believer that Sirius is still alive. My favorite sweatshirt, in fact, merely says _Sirius Lives_ in pretty blue Harry Potter letters on the front. I'm glad you decided to check out Xylodemon's fic. I believe it's on but I could be wrong. Just google Xylodemon if you're having trouble finding it.  
**JitsaruJakara: **Again, I am really glad that you really like this fic. :D:D:D It makes me WAY happy. As far as sexy Sirius and Draco (although not together...for this fic, at least...), I do believe there is more of that coming soon. Quite soon, in fact. Possibly even in the next chapter. However, I can't make any promises, so don't get your hopes up too high. *inserts Cheesecake Bites here because it's my favorite treat at the moment*. (By the way, if you're sister still doesn't believe you're funny, tell her I'll put it in writing.)

**Next Chapter: **Harry and Søren talk it up. Harry and Søren look at some books. Harry and Søren visit Draco. (They're starting to look like best friends, aren't they?) But then Harry breaks the chain by visiting Draco in the Changing Rooms. *evil smirk*


	9. IX:It's Such A Big Mistake Lying Here

**Loss**

_by Breninblack_

Disclaimer: All belongs to the ever-wonderful JKR.

Chapter Notes: I just realized, thanks to a comment from JitsaruJakara, that Malfoy's brother's name hasn't been appearing properly. It's been appearing as Søren and it's really supposed to be Søren (pronounced _Sore-ehn_). The reason for this is that I usually write these chapters on my palm pilot while lying in bed or in school or on the way home from school (etc., etc.) and then I transfer them to WordPerfect (because I'm too cheap to buy Microsoft Word). But I'm pretty sure that won't read .wpd files (although I've never tried) so I have to transfer them to RTF documents and that's where they lose the special character. Sorry about that.

Another **VERY IMPORTANT **note is that the last part of this chapter involves a very slashy situation between the two main characters. I am warning people about this first in case you have mistakenly wandered into this story thinking it was a het story or in case you are reading it solely for the element of returning Sirius. If you have an aversion to this sort of thing, feel free to skip the rest of the chapter after Draco goes into the changing rooms.

Enjoy the chapter!

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++  
**Chapter Nine: It's Such A Big Mistake Lying Here In Your Warm Embrace**

Life without Harry was beginning to take it's toll on Hermione Granger. Now that Harry wasn't around to amuse him, Ron wanted to spend all his time with her. She loved Ron, but since Harry's...attempt he had become depressed and clingy and it was starting to get on her nerves.

Because Harry was in the hospital wing under the constant, vigilant watch of Madame Pomfery, Hermione had no choice but to partner up with Ron for their double Potions class. This was not a problem - it was certainly better than being paired up with one of the Slytherins that they were sharing the class with.

Hermione and Ron were the first pair to finish their potion, which came as no surprise. As Ron sat back to doodle on his Potions textbook, Hermione glanced around the room at her classmates. She had to say they were fairing quite well for not having a clue what they were doing.

She glanced over at Malfoy and his partner, Pansy. Now there was someone who knew what he was doing. There weren't many good things she could say about the boy, but she would admit that he had a natural gift for potions.

Hermione watched as Malfoy directed Pansy to chop the ginger root and add it to the potion in-between anticlockwise stirring. Then she watched him dictate how to add the Jobberknoll feathers at the exact moment that the potion turned magenta.

_That's odd,_ Hermione thought. _Malfoy usually doesn't let anyone touch his potions._

It was true; Hermione couldn't remember a time when she had ever seen Malfoy willingly hand over a potion to anyone, let alone dictate how to do it. In fact, now that she thought about it, she couldn't remember a time where he had offered to work with Pansy instead of working alone.

But why was she wasting her time Thinking about him? He was the reason Harry was comatose in the hospital wing. He was the reason she might lose her best friend.

No, don't think that. Harry's going to be just fine. He's going to wake up and Malfoy's going to go back to being the arrogant git he used to be so that Ron and Harry can have stupid little territorial spats with him and everything will go back to normal again.

But as Hermione watched Malfoy's hand involuntarily tremble as he secretly ladeled some of the memory potion they had just completed into a sizeable flask and then hastily shove it in his pocket before anyone could see, she knew that things were never going to be the same.

€€€€€

Harry stared agape at the blonde man before him, struggling to comprehend the situation.

_This was Søren? He was living with the old creep? Were they..._

Harry looked quickly from the old man to Søren and back again. The old man had a smug look on his face and Harry watched as Søren unconsciously put his hand on the old man's shoulder.

Harry's brain went into cardiac arrest. His mouth opened and shut several times in rapid succession, like a fish out of water. There was only thought going through his brain:

THERE WAS A GAY MALFOY!

Harry had learned over the years that the Malfoy's took their prejudice and hate another level. Instead of hating just muggle-borns, they kicked it up a notch to include gays and the mentally ill. They were a long line of modern day Hitlers, that totalitarianistic muggle who had systematically wiped out nearly 11 million people because they had been Jewish, gay or retarded (those few years of primary school with Dudley weren't a total loss). If Lucius knew about his son, he'd want him dead. Maybe that's how he ended up here...

'I imagine you're quite surprised to meet me. After all, it isn't every day that a Malfoy speaks civilly with a Potter.'

'No, it isn't,' Harry replied, unsure of what else to say.

'I should give you a bit of background information, shouldn't I?' Søren laughed nervously like he was trying to make a good first impression and Harry wondered what exactly Draco had told his brother about him. 'I'm Draco's brother. My father pushed me through a Death Veil when I was 18, which was about 16 years ago. I've been stuck in the spirit world since then and I've watched all my friends grow up and start their own lives, while I'm stuck here.'

'With me,' added the old man, almost bitterly.

'Not that I mind being here. I got to meet Gus and learn so much from him.'

'So that's what all this is?' the old man indignantly.'I thought it was maybe you were attracted to me, when really you've just been whoring me for my brain?'

'So you're...' Harry started, ignoring Gus.

'Gay? Yeah. I've always been. Partly why Lucius wasn't upset about pushing me through the veil.'

'Malfoy - er, Draco - seemed to have learned a lot about the veils and the spirit world from you and that's actually how I ended up here.'

'Oh?' was all Søren said.

'My godfather fell through the veil in the Department of Mysteries and it was my fault. I have to find a way to get him back. He wasn't done with his life yet.'

'Neither was I. I have devoted the entire past 16 years to finding away back, but we have yet to figure it out.'

'We?'

'Yes, we,' said Gus. 'I happen to be the only expert on these ruddy devices. If it weren't for me, Søren here would be stuck watching the seconds tick past for the rest of eternity.'

'What can you tell me about the veils?' Harry asked. He had come to the right place, apparently.

'What do you want to know?'

'For starters, what happens when someone goes through the veil?'

'That's easy. Your body and your soul separate, but not completely,' said Gus. Noting Harry's furrowed brow, he continued. 'When you are born, your body and soul are whole and connected as one unit. Some of the ancient cultures believed that when a baby was born was when the Gods gave a person their soul. When you die, your body and soul are severed completely and there is nothing that can reconnect them. However, if you were to go into a coma, your body and soul would separate, but not completely. There would still be a bond there that linked you back to your physical entity. As long as your body is taken care of properly while you are separated from it, you are fully able to go back to it. With veils, the same thing happens. The only difference is that the body disappears somewhere. Where it goes, we're not sure.'

'Is there a way to get the body back?'

'If we knew where it was, I imagine it would be just a simple matter of willing yourself back into the body.'

'So couldn't you just will yourself back into the body right now?'

'Theoretically that should work. But we've tried to no avail.'

'What happens if you go into a coma and your body is somehow destroyed?'

'Then you pass on to the Other Realm.'

'Other Realm?'

'The place you go when you die.'

Harry nodded, deep in thought. After a few moments, he spoke again. 'I've already discovered how to travel and that you can pass through walls and stuff, but what are the logistics of this spirit world? I mean, can you lift things? Are we like ghosts?'

'We are like ghosts in some respects. We can pick things up and move things around, but only if there is nothing around to witness us doing so. And if we were to move something, we would be obligated to replace it in it's original position before anyone were to see it's change.'

'What happens if you don't return it in time?'

'You always do, but I imagine there would be some sort of cosmic explosion.'

Harry did not like the sound of that. Not at all.

'That's exactly why we chose to live here,' Søren said. 'Way out here in the middle of nowhere, the only people that can find us are other spirits and even that's rare. Thus we are free to move things about as we please.'

'Can we use wands?' Harry asked. Imagine the mayhem he could cause if he could get his hands on his wand.

'No. You can't.'

'Is there anyway we can contact the physical world?'

'Yes, but it's completely anonymous. You couldn't send message to your loved ones if you wanted.'

'Well, you could,' Søren contested. 'They just wouldn't know it's from you.'

'True. But then what would be the point?' Gus replied. Everyone fell silent for a moment before Gus spoke again.

'Now that we've answered your questions, we were thinking maybe you could help us out.'

'What do you have in mind?' Harry asked. He was deeply grateful for the information he had received from Gus and S ren that he felt obligated to return the favor.

'We're almost done working on a device that may be able to help us locate our bodies. But we need a _guinea pig_, as the muggles say.'

'What would I have to do?' He was interested if it meant he was closer to getting Sirius back.

'Come look,' Gus said, getting up out of the chair slowly and walking over to the messy table. 'See, we think the bodies go to a large warehouse-type place.'

Gus opened an ancient book and showed him a picture of a cavernous room with rows and rows of what appeared to be shelves.

'We've created a device that could take a person there, except that person has to be in the physical world to use it. We're pretty sure it works, but...'

'But?'

'Well, if it doesn't work, we're almost positive it will result in a most painful death. And...we've never really tried it before. It's all based on theoretical magic.'

'I see. Why couldn't you ask Draco to do it?'

'Draco was too traumatized from his accident and he had only just met me. I couldn't dump a task like this on him after he just found out his entire life has been a lie,' said Søren.

'We're not finished. It may take a couple weeks yet,' Gus commented.

'I'll do it,' Harry said. He had to. It was their only hope.

'We don't want to risk your life for a few more years of ours,' said Gus

'From what I hear, you're crucial to the salvation of the wizarding world,' Søren said.

'I am, but think of all the people we could win over if this works. All those people that Voldemort pushed through. They would want to avenge the time they've lost. Wouldn't you want to get back at your father?' Harry asked Søren.

'Violence is not the answer, Harry,' was all Søren would say.

Gus sat down. 'I think he's perfect. He's willing, he's able. And he's young so he has a better chance of surviving it.'

'But the wizarding world depends on him,' Søren argued. 'If he doesn't make it, everyone's doomed.'

'Look,' Harry said. 'Think about it. I've got a while before I should go back to the physical world. Think it over and I'll come back in a couple of days. In the meantime, do you have anything I could take to my godfather? You know, to show him there's still hope?'

'Sure,' said Gus, handing him two books. 'Take these. We're done with them.'

'Thanks, guys.' With that Harry said his goodbyes and left the ruined cottage.

€€€€€

Harry didn't go straight to Grimmauld Place. He wasn't ready to deal with Sirius being all responsible about him yet. Plus, he wanted to take a look at the books first.

So there he sat, in the darkened quidditch stands, reading the two books that Gus had given him. They were titled _Study of Veilular Mechanics_ and _Notes on the Transitions Between Spirit and Physical Worlds_, both written by a Mr. Wolfgang de Guass. He appeared to be the inventor of the Death Veils and seemed to know everything there was to know about the subject. Gus must have memorized the books cover to cover because the pages and binding were well worn.

A noise from the field distracted Harry and he looked up to see Draco Malfoy carrying his broom onto the pitch. The boy's hair glowed florescently in the light of the moon and Harry found he did not want to look away.

Malfoy - or rather, Draco (it was easier to refer to him by his first name now that there were two Malfoys) - had kicked off and was now flying at a low altitude. Only he wasn't doing too terribly good a job. His movements were jerky and stunted, as if he had never ridden a broom before. Harry thought back to that day in first year when Mal-- when Draco had taken Neville's Rememberall and zoomed off with it. He had been so familiar with the use of a broom that day it had been as if he had been flying his whole life.

_Which he probably had_,' Harry thought.

Harry watched as Malfoy struggled to maintain a steady height in the air. He veered and swerved to the point that Harry was sure he must be getting dizzy, and yet he kept on

Finally, after almost an hour of trying, Draco had managed to maintain a steady height for at least a few metres. Apparently satisfied with his progress, Draco landed and made his way over to the changing rooms.

And, books forgotten, Harry followed him. He was far more curious than he would have liked to admit and it wasn't like anyone would be able to see him anyway.

Draco was already in the shower when Harry arrived. He stayed around the corner where he couldn't see anything until he heard Draco pad out of the showers.

Harry rounded the corner and was confronted by the sight of Draco dropping his towel.

He couldn't look away. He knew this was so wrong in so many ways, but he could not stop staring. He was willing to look past the fact that this was totally pervy of him and that it was a blatant violation of Draco's privacy because he was incredibly aroused by this naked Draco.

He cautiously stepped forward until he was standing behind Draco. He looked down at he boy's skin: pure alabaster, in color and smoothness. Before he could stop himself, Harry reached out and ran his fingers down Draco's arm.

Draco stopped drying himself almost immediately. He looked around, even though he knew no one was there.

Harry had to touch him again. So he traced the contours of Draco's shoulder blades and Draco shuddered and let out a small gasp.

Delighted by the noise he had elicited from the blonde, Harry stepped even closer, letting his brain relax and his instinct take over. He slowly ran his hands down the length of Draco's arms, causing him to shudder again. He traced the veins on the back of Draco's hands and Draco grew very, very still.

'Harry?' he said very quietly, so quietly that Harry almost didn't hear. But he did hear and it caused him jump back and sprint out of the changing rooms.

{**A/N:** Do you like it? Please tell me how I did. Especially about the scene with Draco and Harry. I'm testing the waters to see how believable it is which is why not much really happened. I've never written sex scenes of any kind so I want FEEDBACK! I love you?

Another note I should mention about chronology. If you're paying attention, (which I apparently have not been) you'll notice that this story doesn't add up chronologically. Let me explain: Assuming that Lucius and Narcissa were in their earlier twenties when Søren was born, let's say they were both 23, and Søren was 18 when he got pushed through the veil and Draco was 1, that would put Lucius and Cissa at 57 at the time of this story. Considering that the Malfoy's were supposed to be at Hogwarts the same time as the Potters, this is not plausible. Even if Cissa had Søren when she was 15, that would make her 49 and that's still pretty farfetched. Although, not necessarily, because my parents are around 45ish and I'm only turning 17 in August, so I guess it could work. However, it still doesn't put them in school at the same time as the Potters, assuming the Potters had Harry a few years after they graduated and got married. .So, as a result of my not thinking this through, I wouldn't pay too close attention to dates in this fic (I think the dates for Sirius falling through the veil and the time of this story don't divide perfctly, either...). I promise I'll pay closer attention in my next fic. Sorry about this, guys (and gals, though to be honest, I don't know how many of which read this...)

To my splediferous reviewers:  
**JitsaruJakara: **You dyed your hair pink? That's awesome! My hair used to be green, but my mum won't let me dye it anymore. tear Normally, I'm a stickler for spelling, but I'll let it slide because I like you. . I think you'll like this chapter. Or at least I hope you will. Some good sexi Draconess. Oh, ah the little slashy o thing, all you have to do is go into the character map (start>accessories on windows)and select it.  
**Shania Maxwell: **Glad you think the story's interesting!  
**yukaishepards:** Glad you like the plot! I hope this qualifies as 'ultra soon.'

THANK YOU FOR READING I LOVE YOU ALL!

}

**Next Chapter:** Harry reconciles with Sirius. Harry finds out about the _device_. More surprises to come. (Hopefully.)


	10. X: Gotta Travel On

**Loss **

_by Breninblack _

Disclaimer: All belongs to the ever-wonderful JKR.

Chapter Notes: I apologize for the delay of this chapter. I have been busy with portfolio reviews and volunteer work and, to be quite honest, I was having trouble writing this chapter. But it's here and _quite_ a bit longer than any of the other chapters. Personally, I think it's a little bit weak in places, but I'll let you be the judges of that. Enjoy! (And don't forget to review!)

**Chapter Ten: Gotta Travel On**

Harry didn't stop running until he reached the Gryffindor common room. It wasn't until he got there that he realized it was probably the last place he wanted to be right now. Besides, he realized, he had left the books Gus had given him in the quidditch stands.

The Fat Lady's portrait swung open just as he turned around. Harry looked behind him to see Hermione and Ginny walking towards him.

'You should have seen it,' Hermione was saying. 'I've never, in all our seven years, seen him have someone else do his potions work for him.'

_They must be talking about Draco,_ Harry thought.

'Now that you mention it...I went out to do some solo flying the other night, after dinner. He was out there, flying in circles over and over and over. Like he had never flown before. I mean, the only time people ever do that is when they're first learning to fly. His movement was real stuttered, too. I wonder why.'

'I think it's from the accident. He's been so different since he woke up. I hate to say it - Harry and Ron would kill me if they knew - but this new Malfoy isn't so bad.'

'Even after all he's done to you? After all these years?'

'But think about it, Gin. Everyone knows it's not the villain who does the dirty work; it's his right hand man. Malfoy lives under the rule of the Dark Lord's right hand man. I imagine that it's probably worse than living with You-Know-Who himself.'

'I suppose.' Ginny shrugged.

'Plus, that scar makes him look hot. You can't deny it.'

Ginny laughed. 'You've got that right.'

The girls continued down the corridor, giggling and gossiping. Harry stopped following them and slowly made his was back to the quidditch stands to retrieve his books. For a long time, he sat in the stands, thinking. His mind was so convoluted that he had a hard time concentrating.

Everyone, it seemed, was attracted to Draco. Pansy was always fawning over him and, as their conversation in the hallway made apparent, Hermione and Ginny didn't deny his attractiveness, either. If he hadn't been such an arsehole all these years, Harry was sure that his fan following would rival his own by now.

Maybe he wasn't attracted to Draco, per se. Maybe he just had an appreciation for the boys looks that was devoid of anything sexual. Yes, that was it.

_No, that's not it_, said a little voice in his head. _That little display in the locker room made that _very_ clear_.

Harry sunk his head into his hands. So he was gay. Is that was he was? This was so weird. This was not something he had ever considered before and he had no idea what it meant.

And all sexuality issues aside, how the hell had Draco known it was him? He couldn't have possibly been able to see him, or Draco would have noticed Harry standing there in a disposition that made him more than a little vulnerable to some rather snide remarks. Unless Draco had gained some kind of sixth sense upon returning to the physical world that allowed him to sense spirits, Harry couldn't see how it was possible. And he wasn't sure he'd be finding out anytime soon. This was not something he would likely be confronting Draco about. Ever.

Harry yawned. He'd been so caught up in the information he'd received from Gus and Søren hadn't realized he was so tired. It had been a long day. He decided he had better get some sleep, although he wasn't entirely sure where he was going to get it. There was only one place he could think of and he'd been meaning to go there, anyway. Closing his eyes, he pictured Grimmauld Place and then he was gone.

€€€€€

Draco sat in the library on Tuesday morning, glaring angrily at the book in front of him. He was supposed to be in Charms right now, but he'd found that spending his time staring futilely at a book was a much better use of his time. It wasn't like he was able to do anything in class anyway. The accident had destroyed his refined motor skills. He no longer attained the ability to do a perfect swish-and-flick. This wasn't a big setback as far as his Charms assignments went; he had been able to do wandless magic from a very young age. But the thing he was truly devastated about was the impact on his writing and his flying abilities. He could no longer write in his once beautiful, loopy script; it was now a scratchy, jagged scribble that was barely legible. And his flying was pathetic, at best. He hadn't even flown that bad the first time he'd ever gotten on a broom. He made Neville Longbottom look like a World Cup champion.

Draco tried to focus his attention on the book. It was a book titled _The Plane Next Door: A Journey Into The Spirit World. _He had scoured the restricted section - with Dumbledore's clearance - for anything that vaguely referred to the spirit world and this was one of the best books he found. However, it told him little he hadn't learned for Søren. It seemed that his brother's boyfriend (if you could call him that - he was old enough to be Søren's father and then some) was the only viable source of information on the subject.

Draco sighed and resumed glaring angrily at the book. He was so distracted that there was no hope of concentrating. He could not stop thinking about the very eerie experience he'd had in the changing rooms the night before. He had gone out to the pitch, just like every other night since he woke up and he spent about an hour flying before finally throwing in the towel. He'd showered and was drying himself off when he felt something brush his arms. It hadn't been quite a solid feeling of another human being, but it hadn't been the icy chill of a ghost, either. He knew that he was alone, but he had looked around anyway. Then he had felt it again, as if the wind was tracing lines on his shoulders. It was all very spooky and he couldn't help himself from shuddering. Then it was as if someone had moved to stand right behind him, so close that they might have touched him. But he didn't need to turn around to know that no one was there. He briefly wondered if this was some lost spirit toying with him, but as soon as he'd felt the invisible fingers trace the veins on his hands, he had known it was Harry.

And then it was gone. Just as quickly as it had come, it disappeared, leaving Draco with a rapidly growing problem that required him to take yet another shower. But the second shower gave him time to mull over what had just happened, something he would repeat several times the following day.

What was Harry doing in the changing rooms? Had he known that he, Draco, was going to be there.? And why was Harry touching him? There were so many questions that Draco felt like his brain was going to implode. And on top of that, he'd had another dream about Harry last night and that certainly did not help things at all. But ultimately everything led to one question:

_Was he attracted to Harry? _

He'd had crushes on some of his classmates before - he and Blaise had had late night trysts in the Astronomy Tower on several occasions - but Harry was a completely different ball game. If he was going to renounce his father's ways, this would be the ultimate act of betrayal. The icing on the cake.

His thoughts were interrupted by the arrival of second person. He didn't need to look up to see who it was; it was obvious from the precise clickety-click of her Italian heels on the cold stone floor that announced her arrival.

'What do you want, Pansy?' Draco asked before she could get a word out.

'Drakky,' she began, trying to sound serious, but only coming off as whiney, 'I think it's time we had a serious conversation. I feel like you've been avoiding me ever since you woke up. I'll be honest here and tell you that I feel neglected. We're supposed to be getting married at the end of the year. We can't have these kinds of communication barriers if we want to make it work. I know that you're in shock from the accident, but that's no reason to leave me here in the dark. I really think that if we talk about this, we can resolve the issue and move on with our lives. I've got so many ideas for the wedding.'

Draco closed his eyes and took a deep breath. It took all he had not to upturn the table at the girl's ignorance. When he regained control of himself, he spoke quietly, but firmly,

'Pansy. There never has and never will be anything between us. You have been living with delusions ever since you met me. I don't know where you came up with this bollocks about marriage, but it's not happening.'

'Drakky,' she said again and it sounded like nails on a chalkboard. He hated it when she called him that. 'Didn't your father tell you? While you were asleep, he spoke with my father and they made arrangements to have us marked and married at the end of the school year. It's all going to be so exciting! I just can't wait. Mother's going to take me dress shopping the next time we have holidays.'

Draco sat there, stunned by what she was telling him. He couldn't think of any two things he wanted less than to be marked and married to Pansy Parkinson. There was only one thing he could do.

'Listen, I'm only going to say it once and I'm going to say it slowly so you can understand. The day I marry you will be the day hell freezes over. It's not going to happen, no matter what my bloody father says. Not now, not at the end of the year. Not ever.'

Now it was Pansy's turn to be stunned. She sat there, not moving a muscle and Draco almost wondered if he'd even heard her.

'You _have_ to marry me, whether you want to or not. Your _alliances_ require you to marry and I _am_ going to be your wife.'

Draco stood to leave. 'I have no alliances, Pansy.' She looked at him like he'd just told her that she would no longer be getting handmade robes. 'You heard me. I have no alliances. I will not serve that pathetic excuse of a man that you all worship so devoutly. Nor will I serve someone who requires me to marry an ugly cow like you. So when you go back to your dormitory and send word to my father of my _abomination_, be sure to tell him that Søren sends his love.'

He strode off confidently, knowing that he had just signed his own death wish.

€€€€€

Harry never made it to his bedroom. As soon as he found himself in the parlor of Grimmauld Place, he collapsed on the couch and promptly fell asleep. He had awoken this morning to the delicious smell of bacon and eggs and had immediately gone bounding into to the kitchen to see what Remus was cooking them.

Only it wasn't Remus he found cooking. At the ancient stove was Dumbledore, quietly cooking eggs. Perched on a stool in the corner was Sirius.

'Mornin', Harry,' Sirius said brightly. 'I heard you come in last night.'

'Hey,' Harry said, joining him in the corner. He had been a little nervous about coming back to Grimmauld Place because of the huff he'd left in the last time he'd been here. However, it appeared that Sirius had forgotten.

'Don't know why he's here,' Sirius said, motioning toward Dumbledore. 'Just showed up all of the sudden. It was quite strange.'

They lapsed into a brief silence as they watched Dumbledore finish cooking and set the table.

'Can I ask you a question, Sirius?' Harry asked.

'You just did, Guppy!' Sirius replied, ruffling his hair. 'But I'll let you ask another.'

'Are you mad at me?'

Sirius raised an eyebrow. 'Should I be?'

'Well, like you said, it probably wasn't the smartest thing to do to come here and then I just stormed off when I saw you the other day. I just figured you might be mad at me.'

'Harry, I'm not mad. I was a little surprised, but not mad. Truth be told, you did exactly what your father or I would have done in your position. So I understand your choice in coming here. But I don't think you should stay too long. Pomfery can only work her magic for so long.'

Harry smiled and gave his godfather a hug, just as Remus came into the room.

'Oh my! Professor! I didn't realize you were -- what are you doing here?' Remus asked, looking quite disheveled in his muggle pyjamas.

'Remus, I have asked you time and again to call me Albus. I have not been your teacher for quite some time now.'

'It just doesn't feel right,' Remus mumbled as he conjured up a pot of coffee. Then he looked at the breakfast that the Headmaster had prepared. 'Don't you have house elves who will do this for you?'

'There is a satisfaction unlike anything else derived from doing something yourself,' replied the Headmaster. 'Do sit down, Remus. I'm quite sure you don't want to be eating a cold breakfast.'

The two men sat down to eat and after he was sure Remus had taken at least a few bites, Dumbledore spoke again.

'Remus, have you heard any news from Hogwarts lately?' he asked.

'No. Harry hasn't written yet this year. But I assume that's what you're here to do?'

'A few months ago, we had a quidditch match. It was a Slytherin-Ravenclaw game.'

Remus looked quizzically at Dumbledore, but kept silent.

'At this particular match, there was a most unfortunate incident. Young Mr. Malfoy was struck simultaneously by two bludgers, one to the back of his head and one to the side.'

Remus looked horrified as he set down his fork. 'I never really liked the kid, but gosh. Is he alright?'

'He was in a coma for several months, but he has since woken up and returned to his regular routine of classes, for the most part, though much of his arrogance is gone and his beliefs have been shattered.'

'That's good. That he woke up, I mean. Did his parents put up much of a fuss?'

'Quite the opposite. They owled to say they were too busy to be concerned.'

Remus shook his head. 'Lucius never did have time for his children. Did they ever find his other son?'

'The official search party did not locate him, however, I believe we have discovered his whereabouts.'

'That's good. Narcissa should be happy to hear that,' Remus said, as he began to eat again.

'What is curious, though, is where he was found and the real story of what happened to him that has surfaced.'

'I thought he got lost in the woods. Or at least that's what I heard. I didn't hear until after...well, I didn't hear about it until later.'

'That is what I, too, thought happened to him. There was no reason to believe otherwise, until now.'

'Oh?' Remus said around a mouthful of eggs.

'When young Draco Malfoy returned from his coma, he spoke of another plane of existence. A spirit world, if you will. He claims to have finally met the brother he never knew in this spirit world. He says that his brother did not get lost in the woods, as Lucius would have liked everyone to believe. It appears that Søren Malfoy was purposefully pushed through a veil by his own father. The same veil, in fact, that currently resides in the Department of Mysteries.'

Remus stopped eating. 'I do hope that I have merely heard you incorrectly. It seems I have just heard you suggest that Lucius Malfoy knows what the veil does and how it works.'

'That is exactly what I am suggesting.'

'This is great news, Professor! This means there is still hope! Is there anyway we can get into the Malfoy library? Could Snape make up some story to get in there? He's on good terms with Lucius.'

'I would not get too excited yet, my dear friend. There is more.

'I was not the first that Draco spoke to about this spirit world. He apparently had a brief encounter with Harry, during which he relayed a message to Harry from his godfather.'

Remus' eyes began to water, though it was clear he was trying to hold them back. Sirius got up from his post on the stool and rushed to his friend's side.

'Moony, it's alright. Don't cry. I didn't think the Malfoy boy'd know who you were or how to reach you, or I would have sent word to you.'

Sirius hugged Remus, but it did no good. Remys couldn't feel a thing.

'What was the message?' Remus asked quietly.

'He wanted Draco to tell Harry that he still loved him.'

'This is too much,' Remus said. 'Too much.'

'Apparently Harry thought so, too. I regret that we did not keep a closer watch on him and it seems he has gone off to look for Sirius.'

Remus looked up. 'How?'

'I believe he realized, or Draco told him, that one could visit the spirit world if one induced a coma. So Harry

did just that.'

Remus couldn't hold back any longer. He slumped forward, his body racked with sobs. It was Harry's turn to rush to Remus' side.

'I'm coming back,though, Remus. You don't need to worry.'

'Why does everyone I love get taken away from me? Every last person,' Remus said bitterly.

'Don't despair,' Dumbledore said, putting a hand on Remus' shoulder. 'It is Harry's belief - and mine as well - that he will return to us. And if his past actions are any indication, he'll only come back with Sirius in tow.'

'I hope so. I don't know if I could take it if I lost them both. Harry's the closest thing Sirius and I will ever have to a son. I don't want to lose them.'

'Be strong, Remus. It is only a matter of time. I wish I could stay longer, but I must get back to the school. I trust you'll be alright by yourself? It can be arranged for Tonks to come over, if you wish.'

'No, I'll be fine. Thank you, Professor.'

After Dumbledore had gone, Remus just sat at the table quietly. Then he finally got up and, with Sirius and Harry in tow, went straight to his library.

While Remus quickly pulled out book after book off his shelf and settled into to read them, Sirius and Harry found a place at the other end of the room where they simply sat and talked. Harry filled Sirius in on the events that had occurred after he had fallen through the veil at the Ministry and all the things that had happened since, which admittedly was not much.

'Siri,' Harry said after they had lapsed into a momentary silence, 'what did Remus mean when he said that I was the closest thing you and him had to a son?'

Sirius blushed. 'Well, you see, Harry...It's like this...huh, well...Remus and I are - were - kind of, well, seeing each other.'

'You mean, you were like dating?'

'Yes,' Sirius said, fiddling with a tear on his shirt.

'Going steady?'

'Yeah,.'

'Consorting?'

'You could say that.'

'Having intimate relations?'

'HARRY!'

'You were! You were buggering Remus!'

'I think we've heard quite enough from you, young lad!' Sirius ran into the bedroom and grabbed a pillow to whack Harry with. Harry retaliated by grabbing his own pillow and soon they were in the in the midst of a full fledged pillow fight.

Just as Harry was about to strike Sirius again, the pillows flew out of their hands and back on to the bed exactly as they had found them, just as Remus entered the room.

'Great,' he said to no one. 'Now I'm hearing things.'

'It's us! Remus, over here!' Harry yelled.

'Moony! I can see yooou!' Sirius danced in a little circle around Remus, waving his hands, and soon Harry joined in. They danced and hollered, but Remus just stood there, straining his ears, before walking back into his library.

'Sometimes I think that the lupine part of him can sense me,' Sirius said, after they had gone down to the parlor to retrieve Harry's books. 'That's why I hang around here so much. I think that if I stay here long enough, one day he'll be able to know I'm here. That and I miss him like hell.'

'Don't worry, Sirius. I think I've found a way to get us back.'

'And how, pray tell, do you think you're going to do that?' Sirius asked skeptically.

Harry explained how he had spoken with Gus and Søren; how they had developed a device to bring people back from beyond the veil and how it was dangerous, but he wasn't going to let that stop him. 'Which reminds me, I have to go back there to see if they're ready. In the meantime, I got some books for you to read. It'll give you something to do while you wait.'

'Harry?'

'Yeah?'

'Be careful, okay? I don't want you to get hurt. I love you too much. And besides, everyone is kind of depending on you to save their arses.'

'Don't worry. I'll do what needs to be done.'

€€€€€

When Harry arrived at the dilapidated shack, Søren and Gus were in the middle of a heated argument.

'He's too young!' Søren yelled. 'He can't possibly understand what he's risking!'

'He's well aware what he's risking. He's not stupid, you know,' Gus retorted.

'You don't know what Voldemort's capable of! I lived with it for 18 years and I've watched Draco live with it for another 17. Your worst nightmares can't even be compared to what the Dark Lord is capable of.'

'My nightmares consist of pink ponies and giant vats of tapioca pudding. I bloody well hope he's capable of more or you all knickers in a bunch about nothin'!'

Harry didn't want to intrude, but he couldn't help laughing at Gus' remark, even though the Dark Lord was really something to be joked about.

'Oh, Harry. I didn't realize you were here,' Søren said. 'We were just talking about you.'

'More like expending our vocal chords about you,' Gus muttered.

'What's up?' Harry asked, sliding into one of the wingbacks. 'Did you finish the device?'

'It's finished,' Søren said tersely.

'We can agree on that, but we can't agree on whether or not we should let you use it.'

'Doesn't majority rule in cases like this? There are two for, one against. We win,' Harry said simply.

'It's not that easy, kiddo,' Søren said. Harry ignored his use of the term kiddo, despite the fact that it didn't really apply; Søren was technically only one year older than him. 'I_ know _I can over power you, Gus, and it's a good bet I could take you, Harry, even with your seeker skills. I'm not going to let you do it.'

'Look, Søren. This is really important to me. Voldemort killed my parents and the only family I have left are Remus and Sirius. Remus is already devastated from losing Sirius and Sirius is the closest thing I've got to a father. I refuse to let Voldemort take away everyone I care about. I think you can understand where I'm coming from because Draco is in virtually the same situation: Voldemort has taken his whole family from him, and you are his only hope. If this works, this means you can go back and Draco will finally have someone to turn to.'

Harry could tell that Søren really cared about Draco because ultimately that's what made him change his mind. 'Alright. You can do it. But take someone with you. I don't want the fate of the wizarding world going head first into danger alone.'

'So what do we have to do?'

'All you have to do is go back to your body,' said Gus. 'We'll send you the device by anonymous owl with instructions on how to use it. You must follow the instructions exactly as they are written or it could be fatal.'

Harry nodded solemnly, but excitement was running through his veins at high speed.

'Good luck, boy,' said Gus.

'I wish you the best,' Søren said as Harry blinked out of sight.

€€€€€

After saying a quick but temporary goodbye to Sirius, Harry blinked himself to the Hogwarts infirmary. He assumed that returning to his body would be merely a matter of willing himself there, but he figured it couldn't hurt to be in close proximity.

Madame Pomfery had put up screens around his bed to afford his visitors a bit of privacy. He walked through the screens to his bedside and found Hermione resting her head in her folded arms on the bed, soundly asleep.

She looked so peaceful that he had to admire the beauty of the scene for a moment. But he had come here on a mission and he needed to fulfill that mission.

He closed his eyes and tried to focus solely on his body and the feeling of being in it and all the sensations that came with it. He thought about hugging Ron and Hermione, and the sensation of flying. He imagined what it would be like to really touch Draco and taste him.

He felt the ground suddenly shake beneath him and then everything went black.

**(A/N**: A couple notes about the chapter:

a) I realize I didn't fully explain how Draco knew it was Harry. More to come on that.

b) In the non-magical fic _Life, As Experienced Through Your Fingers_ by Gold-Snitcher, Sirius calls Harry 'Guppy' much to Harry's dismay. I am a firm believer of giving credit where credit is due, and Gold-Snitcher is responsible for that endearing little bit.

To my spectacular reviewers:

**Yukaishepards**: Hopefully this chapter explains a little bit…thanks for reviewing and I'm glad you liked the chapter!  
**Shania Maxwell**: Like I said, there's more to come about Draco knowing it was him.  
**JitsaruJakara**: I'm having a weird day today where I can't type anything. In the reply to your comment alone, I must've had to backspace a couple dozen times because I'm making so many errors today. Bah! The normally benevolent typing Gods are smiting me today! Ah well…not much I can do about it, now is there? Congratulations, I think, on the positive pregnancy test…is that a good thing? o.O)

**Next Chapter: **Does Harrry return to the physical world? Stay tuned and find out!


	11. XI: Back For A Taste Of Your Love

**Loss**

_by Breninblack_

Disclaimer: All belongs to the ever-wonderful JKR.

Chapter Notes: I was bombarded with reviews when I opened my inbox today and it melted my cold, cold heart. I love all of you who reviewed and personal review replies are at the bottom. Enjoy the chapter!

* * *

**Chapter Eleven: Back For A Taste Of Your Love**

Hermione Granger usually spent most of her free time in the library. She found it was ten times more productive than sitting in the Gryffindor common room, trying to concentrate over the noises of her house mates having fun. In the library she found it easier to complete her homework with ample time to get through the long list of recreational reading she had made for herself.

However, things were not as usual. One of her best friends was in a self-induced coma and the other was getting increasingly reckless with every passing day that first said best friend was asleep. It was a tiring process and she was growing weary. So in response to the unusual circumstances, she began spending as much of her free time in the hospital wing as Madame Pomfery would allow.

So that's why late Tuesday night, Hermione Granger could be found at the bedside of the comatose Harry Potter.

She knew that Madame Pomfery would be in soon to tell her to go to bed, but she was so tired that she thought it couldn't hurt to just rest her head next to Harry for a few minutes. She wouldn't let herself fall asleep. She still had homework to do that night . . .

Hermione was woken by some softly stroking her hair. She didn't remember falling asleep, but the last time she had looked outside it was still light out. It was now dark.

Hermione sat up groggily and looked around her. Madame Pomfery was no where to be found, Harry was looking at her with open eyes and the ward was empty . . .

Harry was looking at her with open eyes.

'Oh!' was all she managed to get out before throwing herself at Harry and giving him the best hug he'd ever received. In no time at all, she was crying, tears spilling out of her eyes like dams had broken loose.

'Harry. Oh Harry oh Harry oh Harry!' was all she could say. She wanted to say more, but her brain just wouldn't function properly.

'Hermione. Er, you're kind of suffocating me,' Harry managed from underneath her.

'Oh, I'm sorry, Harry. Oh, I'm so glad you're awake. I really thought we were going to lose you,' she said, sitting up in her chair properly. 'You were starting to get paler as every day passed. Like you were fading away, or something. I was so scared, Harry.'

Harry couldn't stand to see her cry so much, so he scooted over to one side of the bed to make room for her. She gladly climbed in and snuggled up to him.

'Why did you do it, Harry?' she asked after a while.

'I had to Hermione. There was no other way to get Sirius back.'

'What are you talking about? Harry, Sirius is dead.'

'No, he's not. I've just come from talking with him.' He slowly realized that Hermione had no idea that he'd been talking to Draco before he'd jumped and all of the chaos and confusion that had followed. He explained about what Draco had told him before he'd jumped; seeing Sirius again; meeting Gus and Søren; the information he had learned about veils; and the device that would hopefully bring the lost souls back.

'So that's how Malfoy knew where you were. I thought he had set you up to kill yourself and I kind of attacked him.'

'I know. I was there. In spirit, that is.'

'So, there really is another plane of existence? I've read about things like that in passing, but I never thought there was any truth to them.'

'I've come back because I'm going to try to bring Sirius and Søren and Gus back. It'll be dangerous, I know. But before you go scolding me about not getting into trouble, let me just say that this is something I have to do. I couldn't live with myself if I didn't at least try.'

'I know, Harry. I understand. But that doesn't make me any less worried. You'll be careful, won't you?'

'Of course. I think I might ask Draco to come with me. I promised Søren that I would take someone else with and Draco is his brother, after all.'

'Since when do you call him Draco?'

'Since there were two Malfoys,' he said quickly. 'But I also don't see the point of carrying on the rivalry anymore. I don't think that Draco feels the same way about his father's choice of lifestyle as he used to. There's no need to continue fostering grudges on pretenses that don't exist.'

'Ooh, look who's the big shot now, using big words,' Hermione teased, playfully shoving him.

There was a sudden clatter of glass and tin that caused Harry and Hermione to both jump. Madame Pomfery had dropped the tray she was carrying and was hurrying over to Harry's bedside.

'Out! Out!' she scolded Hermione. 'Make yourself useful and go fetch the Headmaster!'

Hermione scrambled out of the bed and out of the infirmary, winking at Harry as she left.

Ten minutes later, she returned with Dumbledore and Ron. Madame Pomfery was not pleased at the sight of another student.

'Albus,' she began. 'We really shouldn't have any other students in here until visiting hours.'

'I don't think it could hurt if they had a few minutes to chat.'

'Alright. Five minutes and that's all.'

Dumbledore and Pomfery left the room and there was an awkward silence.

'I'm glad you're back,' Ron said finally. 'It was getting out of hand while you were gone.'

'_You_ were getting out of hand,' Hermione pointed out.

'Was not!' Ron protested.

'You were skipping classes, neglecting homework, getting in trouble all the time.'

Ron looked sheepishly at Harry. 'Like I said, I'm glad you're back.'

'I'm glad to be back,' Harry replied.

Just then, Pomfery came bustling back in, followed by Dumbledore. She shooed away Ron and Hermione and began poking and prodding him. When she finished, she stepped back and looked from Harry to Dumbledore.

'Right. He should be back on his feet in a week's time,' she said, before bustling back out of the room.

Dumbledore sat serenely at the side of the bed, gazing at Harry.

'I suppose you'd like me to explain why I did it,' Harry said when he could no longer stand the silence any longer.

'Not unless you feel it necessary. I have spoken with Draco Malfoy and I have gathered a pretty good idea myself.'

'What did he say?'

'That he thought you went in search f your godfather,' Dumbledore said simply.

'He thought right,' Harry replied. 'And I found him. Did Draco tell you anything else?'

'He spoke of his brother and a man named Gus.'

Harry blushed, though he wasn't sure why. 'I met them, too. We spoke for quite a while. About veils and the spirit world, that is. They told me they have a device that could bring back the lost spirits.'

'I find that most interesting. Please, elaborate.'

'I don't know much about it, actually. But I do know that you have to be in your body to use it. That's why I came back. They said they would owl it to me.'

'From the spirit world?'

'Yeah. I guess you can send anonymous messages through owl post.'

'Peculiar,' said Dumbledore, steepling his fingers. Harry sat up against the headboard.

'Professor, have many people fallen through the veil?'

'It's hard to say. I believe the Ministry has kept a record of the victims that have fallen since the veil has been in their possession. However, I understand that the particular veil in question was in the hands of Voldemort before the Ministry acquired it, so it would be very difficult to ascertain an exact number. And I doubt that the veil in the Department of Ministries is the only one. Why do you ask?'

'I was thinking that if we knew who had been pushed through the veil by Voldemort we could bring them back and they could help us fight the war.'

'If Voldemort has used the veils as much as I suspect, that number could be a significant assistance. Perhaps you may want to speak with Mr. Lupin. He is a skilled researcher and he has been looking into veils quite a bit since Sirius fell. Together, with the information you gained from the elder Malfoy son and his partner and the knowledge Remus has gained from his research, you may prove to be a powerful think tank.

'Now it is late. Poppy will have my head if I keep you awake any longer. I'm glad you have decided to rejoin us, Harry. It would have been a terrible blow to us all if you had not returned. And not just to the war effort.'

€€€€€

The next morning Hermione showed up bright and early with his school bag and a stack of papers. She presented them to him with a smile.

'Here. I've been going around to your teachers and collecting your homework. It's not too much and it's not even all of it because a lot of teachers were willing to exempt you from your work. You're lucky they like you.'

'You didn't have to,' he said, taking the stack of papers.

'It was nothing,' she said, sitting down.

'No, I mean you REALLY didn't have to. Dumbledore already came by this morning to tell me I was excused from all work until I go back next week.'

'Oh,' she said, looking quite put out. 'I was only trying to be helpful.'

'And I love you for it.'

'Is there anything else I can do? Something I can get you?'

'I'm fine, 'Mione. Really.'

'Are you sure? I can come back during lunch. And I could sneak out of Wizarding World History; Binns won't notice I'm gone.'

Harry laid a hand across his forehead.

'What's wrong? Are you alright? Should I get Pomfery?' Hermione asked worriedly.

'No, I'm fine. I was just checking for a fever because I thought I was hallucinating Hermione Granger telling me she'd _skip_ a class for me,' he said with a smirk.

'Harry! This is no time to joke! You don't know what kind of lasting damage's been done to you!'

'Really,' he chuckled, 'I'm fine.'

'Well, if you're sure . . . ' she trailed off. A few silent seconds lapsed and then Hermione began chuckling, too. 'I suppose you will be alright. Madame Pomfery _is _going to let you out in a week, after all.'

'And you'd hate to miss taking all those notes,' Harry added.

'Yeah, that too. Well, I should get going. Are you sure there's nothing you want?'

'Actually, could you send Hedwig up here? I think it's about time I sent Remus a letter.'

'Sure thing, Harry.'

True to Hermione's word, Hedwig appeared half an hour later. Harry had already written up a letter to Remus, telling him he was doing fine and asking him to come by the castle as soon as he was able. He sent it off and promptly fell asleep.

€€€€€

The next week flew by fast. His fellow Gryffindors made plenty of visits and he received owls from Mrs. Weasley, Tonks, Remus, Kingsley Shacklebolt and a few other members of the Order. The Twins had even sent a package of all their latest products, most of which he had given to Ron.

On Sunday morning, he was woken by Madame Pomfery bustling about beside his bed.

'What are you doing?' he asked blearily.

'Cleaning up your flowers, that's what! You can't expect me to keep them after you've gone, can you?'

'Gone? Oh! I almost forgot! Today is Sunday. I get to leave today!'

'Yes, you get to leave. Now hurry on down or you'll miss breakfast!'

'But I haven't got any clothes,' he said. He most certainly did not want to be seen at breakfast in school pajamas.

'I had the house elves bring you up some proper clothes. One elf in particular seemed quite keen to help you. Atrocious English, but he got the job done.'

Harry smiled and climbed to the end of the bed. The clothes that had been picked out for him were probably the most unmatched pieces he had: a bright yellow hand-me-down shirt from Dudley, a pair of dark green trousers and the ugliest purple socks Dobby had given him for Christmas last year. He could almost hear Dobby saying, 'I picks Harry Potter's best clothes, sir!'

After he had dressed in the Infirmary bathroom, Harry returned to his bed to thank Madame Pomfery.

'Wait, don't throw that away,' he said as she picked up a rose to be discarded. It was a beautiful white rose and Harry couldn't remember who brought it up. 'Do you know who it's from?'

'I'm here to take care of you. Not to monitor your incoming gifts. But I imagine that it's from a _secret admirer_,' Madame Pomfery said irritably.

'I think I'll keep that, thank you,' he said, snatching the rose from it's vase.

Ten minutes later, Harry sat down for breakfast at the Gryffindor table for the first time in weeks. His fellow Gryffindors were all glad to have him back and were making sure he knew it by including him in all of their conversations, regardless of whether he had an opinion on the latest issue of Witch Weekly or all the gossip that had circulated since he had fallen.

As his friends discussed their homework, Harry glanced over at the Slytherin table. Draco was seated at the very end of the table, far away from his friends. He quietly sipped at his pumpkin juice and stared off into space. When he realized someone was staring at him, he looked around and his eyes landed on Harry.

For the briefest moment, they held eye contact, but then Harry blushed furiously and looked away. He was going to go mad if he had to have class with the blonde boy.

Hermione and Ron, who seemed to be getting along much better, waved goodbye to the rest of the group, who had elected to head out to the quidditch pitch so Dean could teach them how to play football. Harry noticed the look of longing on Ron's face as he watched his friends go on without him.

'Mate, it's alright if you go out and play with them,' Harry said to him. 'It's not like I'm going anywhere.'

'Really? Are you sure you're not going to go top yourself off?'

'I'm sure.'

Ron glanced at Hermione and with a long-suffering sigh, she said, 'Alright! Go!'

'Thanks, mate. How about I kick your sorry arse six ways from Sunday in a chess match later?'

Harry laughed. 'Sure thing.'

Ron hurried off to catch up with the gang and Hermione turned to Harry, shaking her head.

'Don't you ever go away on us like that again, you hear? He was getting bloody dreadful while you were away.'

Harry watched as Draco got up from his table and serenely strode out of the hall. Harry saw the opportunity and pounced on it.

'I'd love to stay and chat, Hermione, but I just remembered I left something in the dormitory and I've got to go fetch it.'

'I'll come with you. I'd like to get my sketchbook before I head outside.'

'Er, I actually remembered that I left it in the Charms room. I'll catch up with you later, Mione. I promise.'

Hermione had that slightly worried look on her face and Harry hoped to the Gods that she wouldn't follow him. He hurried out of the great hall and tried to discern where Draco had gone to. If only he had the map . . .

'Accio Marauder's Map!' he said and it took a moment for the map to come whizzing to him. He quickly opened it, muttered the incantation and searched it for Draco's name.

There. By the dungeons. Big surprise there. Harry hurried down to the dungeons following Draco's ambling dot through dozens of passages. Harry had been so intent on following the map that he walked right into someone.

'Bloody hell, Potter. Watch where you're going!' spat Draco himself.

'Oh!' Harry exclaimed in surprise. 'Why are you standing in the middle of the corridor like this?'

'I know when I'm being followed. I could hear you ten minutes ago.'

'And you just led me around?'

'I was curious to see how far you'd go.'

'We need to talk,' Harry said, abruptly changing topics.

'Since when do _we_ need to do anything?'

'Since Søren and Gus said to,' Harry replied cooly.

Draco became very still. 'I see. Well, we can't rightly talk here. We need to go some place else.'

'Good idea. I've got just the place.'

Harry led Draco around the school until he finally stopped at the entrance to a tower.

'The astronomy tower? Give me a fucking break, Potter!'

'No one will be here on a Sunday morning and an equal amount of people will think to look for us here.'

Draco considered this. 'What are you waiting for, then?'

Draco opened the door and shoved Harry in. When they had climbed to the top, Draco conjured a sofa for them to sit on.

'So, you met Søren? And Gus?' Draco said.

'Yeah.'

'Quite a character, that Gus. I can't _believe_ my brother is dating him.'

'He's not so bad, really. He's just a little cynical.'

'A little? Ha! That man is the definition of cynical! But I'm guessing we're not here to talk about him. What did you need to speak to me so urgently about?'

For what felt like the thousandth time, Harry explained what had happened while he had in the spirit world, though it was a significantly shorter story, considering Draco already knew half of the information.

'So what you're saying is that they've figured out a way back?' Draco asked incredulously. 'And they didn't tell me?'

'I guess your brother didn't want to endanger you. They said it would be really dangerous.'

'So letting the one person who's supposed to save the entire wizarding race do it instead? That's brilliant.'

'Look, I'm sorry they didn't tell you, but it's really not that big a deal. They wanted someone to come with me, so it's not like you wouldn't get to go.'

'Out of all the people you could bring, I was the first one on your list?' Draco asked with a bemused smirk.

'If you don't want to go, you can just say so. You don't have to be all snooty about it. I thought you'd like to go, since you are S ren's brother. Since we're going to rescue him, I don't think it would be quite right if I took someone else.'

Draco considered this a moment and regarded Harry for a moment before speaking again.

'Was that you? That night in the changing rooms?'

Harry paled. 'Er . . . '

'It was, wasn't it? I knew it was you. I could tell.'

'How?' Harry's voice was quiet and hoarse. He'd hoped this wouldn't come up, but at the same time he was desperate for to come up.

Draco moved closer. You do this thing when you're not paying attention. You trace the veins in your hands when you're concentrating. That's how I knew,' he whispered.

'Oh?' was all Harry could say. Draco had moved over so close.

'I couldn't really feel you. It was like the wind had grown fingers and was gracefully touching me. But, God, I wished I could have felt you.' Draco was practically on top of him now, breathing heavily on his face and neck. He was so close Harry could smell him; a scent of sandalwood and something unique to Draco himself.

Harry panicked. Suddenly the Astronomy Tower had become the worst place he could have chosen to meet Draco in.

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**A/N:** Ah! I do love cliffies! I know, I know, you probably all hate me dearly for this, but it felt like a good place to stop because the chapter was getting a little long. But lucky for you, I'm uploading two chapters at once, so you can see what happens in the Astronomy Tower. I haven't written it yet, and I'm a little nervous, as I am a first time H/D writer and the only experience of gay sex I have is from _Queer As Folk_ (although I have seen four seasons of it and that adds up to a _considerable_ amount of sex - if you've seen the show, you know what I mean .)

I noticed something else when I was writing this chapter that just goes to show that I haven't really thought this through all the way: I realized that Draco spent a whole nine weeks in a coma, and Harry only spent a few days. But Draco had to find S ren and Gus and he had to catch up with his brother, so he had to spend a little longer. I think that maybe 9 weeks was a little too long, but can't change that now, can I ?

REVIEWERS GALORE - I LOVE YOU ALL:

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**Next Chapter: **Events unfold in the Astronomy Tower and Remus comes for a visit.


	12. XII: When We Collide

**Loss**

_by Breninblack_

Disclaimer: All belongs to the ever-wonderful JKR.

Chapter Notes: A second (bonus!) chapter for the fabulous number of reviews I got. I really want you to review this chapter and tell me how I did because I've never written a scene like the opening one here. I want to know how I did. I'm biting my nails here . . .

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**Chapter Twelve: When We Collide**

Draco hovered over him, hands on either side of him, breathing down his neck. He reached up a hand and traced it down Harry's jaw line. Harry shivered. Draco's touch was lighter than he had imagined. Draco also had that peculiar smell that he had never noticed before.

'Come on, Harry. I know why you were in the changing rooms. There's no point in hiding it now. No point in lying to yourself,' Draco whispered. Harry felt like little chills were being sent down his spine every time Draco spoke in his ear. 'You were there to watch me. It's a shame you weren't actually there. We could have had a _fabulous_ time together.'

Try as he might, Harry could not stop himself from entertaining that idea. Then, quite suddenly, Draco sat on his crotch and wiggled around ever so slightly, making Harry painfully aware of the growing erection struggling against his pants.

'Looks like you're enjoying this as much as I am. What do you say, Harry? You think we ought to do something about it?' Draco asked him as he slid himself up and down Harry's crotch.

'Please, Draco.' Harry could hardly believe he was asking for this, but it felt so good that he could hardly refuse. Draco quickly undid the buttons of his pants and in one swift motion pulled them and his boxers down to his knees.

And then there was a hand around his cock and it was moving up and down slowly at first, then faster, and faster, until Harry could no longer think straight. He grasped at Draco's hips and pulled Draco close to kiss him. It so shocked Draco that he stopped for a moment.

'Don't. Stop,' Harry growled. He arched up into Draco and Draco began to pump him again. Finally, with one final thrust of the wrist, Harry came, shooting all over Draco and himself. Satisfied with himself, Draco sat back on the couch and watched Harry.

When Harry had regained some of his senses, he realized Draco still had a kicking erection that was fighting against the boy's own pants. Figuring it was only fair if he returned the favor, Harry climbed forward and on top of Draco. As he stroked Draco's cock, he made work of savagely kissing Draco's mouth.

Draco came with a jerk and Harry muttered a cleaning spell and sat back. Neither of the boys said anything for a while, just basking in the post-coital haze. Then finally, Draco spoke:

'Where did you learn to kiss like that?'

Harry shrugged. 'I've been around,' was all he said.

'You were a man whore!'

'No! I just . . . have a lot of experience in that department.'

'Who would have thought? Harry Potter, Boy Wonder, is a player. Even more strange, the Boy Wonder is a fag. I think gay lads around the world have all just creamed themselves.'

Harry shook his head. 'Whatever. So, are you going to come?'

'I just did, Potty,' Draco said with a smirk.

'I mean to the spirit world. Are you coming with me to get S ren and Sirius?'

'Don't forget Gus. I bet they're watching us, those pervy freaks, and he'd be very put out if you left him out of all the fun.'

'And Gus,' Harry added, looking around suspiciously. 'It's kind of creepy, don't you think? You never know when someone could be watching you in the spirit world.'

Draco just shrugged. He got up from the couch and stretched like a cat, his disheveled shirt rising above his waist. Harry stared at the pale skin of Draco's stomach in fascination.

'If you like what you see, Potter, you'll have to come back for more another time,' Draco said, catching him staring out of the corner of his eye. 'I've got something else I need to do.'

'Before you leave, will you meet me and Remus tomorrow night at the front of the school? He's been doing some research on the veils and stuff and I think it'd be a good idea if we all pooled our knowledge.'

'Remus and _I._'

'Yeah, whatever. Will you?'

'Sure.' With another shrug, he left the room.

Harry remained in the astronomy tower a little longer, wondering where this left them. He wasn't sure if this meant they were dating, or if it was merely one of the one-night stands Draco was famous for. Either way, there was no turning back now.

€€€€€

The next evening, Harry and Remus walked around the lake. Remus had come by that afternoon to have tea with Dumbledore before meeting with Harry.

'Thanks for coming, Remus,' Harry said, gazing out at the giant squid dip it's long tentacles above the lake's surface.

'I'm always happy to visit you, Harry,' Remus replied. 'And I'm just as eager to get Sirius back as you are.'

'I've asked Draco to come, too. I hope you don't mind. He spent much longer with S ren and Gus and probably knows a lot more than me.'

'I can't say that I like the kid, all things considered. But I'll manage.'

'Here he is now.' Draco approached them at the front steps where they had stopped. He smiled warmly at Harry and then looked at Remus.

'Draco Malfoy, sir,' he said, holding out his hand. Remus didn't shake his hand, but nodded politely. 'Harry's told me a lot about you. So has Mr. Black. I think he misses you.'

Remus got a strange look in his eye and Harry almost thought he might start crying right there. 'Excuse me for being rude,' he said, extending his hand, which Draco shook with a smile. 'I see you've matured quite a bit since your third year.'

'One can only hope so, sir.'

'Right,' Harry said, clapping his hands together. 'Now that we've all kissed and made up, let's get inside, shall we?'

Harry led them up to the third floor and into the Room of Requirement. The room had suited itself to their needs, as it always did, and had provided a large table, three chairs, and plenty of books, quills, ink, and parchment.

'So this is what this room looks like,' Draco said in awe. 'I never actually made it in here.'

'This isn't what it always looks like,' Harry said, as he sat down.

'It equips itself with what you need,' Remus added, as he pondered the shelves.

'You know about this room?' Harry asked in amazement.

'You're forgetting that I was one of the original troublesome four,' he said. A slight sadness came over his face for a moment, but he quickly recovered. 'We knew this place better than anyone. Including the Headmaster. Let's get to work, shall we?'

'Where do we start?' Harry asked.

'From the beginning,' Remus said, sitting down. 'Here - hand me that parchment and quill, Harry.'

Taking the parchment and quill, Remus spelled it to transcribe all the information they discussed. 'Veils were invented in by Wolfgang de Guass in 1557,' Remus said. 'He was into muggle drugs and made it into the spirit world by overdosing on LSD. I don't know how, but he created the death veil to take him back to the spirit world. It seems that he didn't think his plan through and neglected to figure out what happened to the body when you pass through the veil. So, presumably, he's still stuck there. Anyone have anything to add?'

Harry and Draco shook their heads. 'So how about how the veil works?'

'Well, obviously, it takes you to another plane,' Harry said. 'We've both established that.'

'The plane exists on top of this one,' Draco added. 'The spirits are confined to this world, but they aren't allowed to disturb anything if someone from the physical world can see them doing it.'

'To be in the other plane you have to be separated from your body?' Remus asked.

'Yes and no,' Harry said. 'S ren and Gus explained it to me because I didn't really understand either. When you go into a coma or through a veil, your body and soul separate temporarily. There is still a bond between the two that allows you to go back.'

'But you can only go back if you have a body.'

'Interesting,' Remus commented. 'Go on.'

'Like you said, it was never discovered for sure where the bodies went when a person went through the veil. However, S ren and Gus seemed to have figured it out and have developed a device to send me there to retrieve the bodies.'

'Too bad we can't talk with them,' Draco commented. 'They could shed a little more light on the situation.'

Just then, an owl appeared at a window that Harry hadn't noticed before. He went to the window, untied the letter at its leg and released it. 'There's no return address.'

'Open it,' Draco said.

Harry opened the letter and began to read aloud: 'The bodies go to an old abandoned building. They are stored in glass cases lined up on shelves. To release a body, you smash the glass case. Only bodies that went through the veil are stored in this building. If a person went into a coma and their body was destroyed, they will be eternally stuck.

'The exact location of the building is unknown, but a device has been developed to take you there. That device will be sent to you shortly. Included is an approximated sketch of the main room of the building.'

'It's from Gus and S ren,' Harry said. 'They must be here. Thank you, guys,' Harry said to no one. He took out the picture from the envelope and passed it around. Draco and Remus studied it carefully.

'So when we go to bring people back, who do we rescue?' Harry asked. 'The more people the better, but we've got to be sure that they'll help us fight.'

'It's a good bet that anyone that the Dark Lord put over there will want to work against him,' Draco said.

'Not if they were one of his Death Eaters,' Remus pointed out. 'They would have no choice to go back to him because he'd have them killed if they didn't.'

'So no Death Eaters,' Harry said. 'What about muggles?'

'It would be no use,' Draco said. 'When you go through a veil, you get stuck in the plane over the wizarding world. Even though they would be familiar with the magical world, they wouldn't be any help because they still wouldn't be able to do anything magically. The last time the Dark Lord had the veil was over 15 years ago, so anyone they knew would have grown up by then. It would be hard for them to just show up again.'

'No Death Eaters and no muggles. How do we find out who to rescue then?'

'I imagine we go to the Ministry and check their database of missing people,' Remus suggested. 'We don't really have the time to go about rescuing everyone, so we should stick to Aurors, members of the Order and people who were known to be anti-dark arts.'

There was a tap on the window and the three men looked over to see another owl at the window. Draco got up to get the letter.

'There's a package here, too, addressed to Harry,' Draco said, sitting back down. He passed the package to Harry and opened the letter. 'It's a list of people who are all willing to fight against the Dark Lord. S ren and Gus must have spoken to them. I think I've even met a few of them.'

'This must be the device,' Harry said peering into the box. He lifted a small steel orb out of the box and then a sheet of parchment with instructions. 'It looks like all we have to do is press the top of this orb and it'll take us there.'

'So I'll compile a list of Aurors and Order members and when you guys go, you can take it with you,' Remus said.

'How long will it take you?' Harry asked, jumping up. 'I want to do this as soon as possible.'

'We should go slowly, Harry,' Draco said. He put a hand on Harry's shoulder. 'One mistake and we could really screw things up.'

'It'll take me a few days, at least.'

'We've got a holiday coming up,' Draco said. 'I think we get two days off next week. We can do it then.'

'Alright. I'll come back next Sunday night and then . . . we'll do it,' Remus said. It was clear that he was scared it wasn't going to work.

'You want to get Sirius back, don't you?' Harry asked, sensing his unease. 'This is the only way it can be done. We've got to at least try.'

Remus nodded. 'You've just got to promise me you'll be careful, Harry. I couldn't stand to lose you, too.'

'I promise, Remus. Nothing is going to happen to me.'

Remus glanced at his watch and stood up. 'Well, boys, it's late. I should get going. You'll need to get your rest for your classes tomorrow.'

'Thanks for coming, Remus,' Harry said again.

'It was my pleasure,' he replied. Harry walked him to the fireplace in the corner and gave his friend a hug. 'See you next week, I guess. Try to stay in one piece and out of trouble until then, okay?'

'Will do. Good night.'

After Remus had left, Harry sat back down at the table across from Draco.

'How can you be so sure of yourself?' Draco asked. 'I was under the impression that S ren and Gus don't even know if this is going to work and if it doesn't we're pretty much walking deadmen. How can you be so confident that everything's going to work out? Aren't you the least bit scared?'

'I could ask you the same thing, Draco. I overheard Pansy talking with Millicent in the hall today. She seemed rather distraught about a confrontation you apparently had with her the other day. She was telling Millicent how she'd owled your father and that he was very upset with you. She said he told her that he was going to come up to the castle and take you away.'

'Don't believe that cow. She's all talk. We _did_ have a confrontation, and I'm sure she owled my father, however I do not think he'd waste his precious Death Eater time to come all the way up here to deal with me.'

'Don't you think he's mad?'

'I know he's mad. He probably figured out I was gay a long time ago and has been pretending it's not true ever since. But now that I've officially renounced his plan for me _and _brought S ren into the picture, he's sure to be spun up into a tizzy. But he's always mad with me. I have never been the son he's wanted me to be.'

'Aren't you scared?'

'No. I've put up with his shit for 17 years. This is no different from all of the other times he's been furious with me.'

'What would he say about us?'

'What about us?'

'Well . . . I just assumed that since we . . . ' Harry started.

'Since we what? What did you assume?' Draco was clearly having fun tormenting him.

'Since our little encounter in the Astronomy Tower, I figured we were in some kind of relationship now,' Harry said, his cheeks burning up.

'You're so conventional! Believe me, Potter, I've had more one-night stands up there than you can count. It never means anything.'

'I see,' Harry said, crestfallen. He got up to leave, but Draco stood up in front of him, blocking his path to the door.

'But for you . . . I think I could make an exception,' he said softly, kissing Harry on the mouth. He gently pushed Harry back into a chair and kissed him again.

'Do you think we should tell anyone?' Harry asked, in-between kisses.

'Do _you_ want to deal with the Weasel when he finds out his Golden Boy is dating the one and only stunning Draco Malfoy?' Draco challenged.

'Good point,' Harry said. 'Hey, do you mind if we never leave this room?'

'Sounds like a fine idea to me,' Draco muttered as he unbuttoned Harry's pants.

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**A/N:** Another chapter, finished and done. What do you think? I want your opinion on how I did with the sex (although, technically, it wasn't sex, it was just a couple of hand jobs . . . ). Was it believable? Please review!

Also, this fic will be nearing the end. I think there maybe a couple more chapters left (at LEAST two, maybe as many as five or six...but I'm not sure yet). Let me know if there's anything you'd like to see before the fic ends and I'll see if I can work it in there.

Lions and tigers and reviews! Oh my!

**JitsaruJakara:** Ah! I feel so honoured! A capitalized title! Yay! That is WAY awesome that you can do the Draco thingy with your hair. Except Draco doesn't have pink hair. Now there's a thought. Can you imagine him with pink hair? That might make an interesting fic...and Hooray for Babies! (p.s. - you're my Best Fanfic Friend, too!) Do let me know what you think of these two chapters...I'm really nervous about them!  
**fifespice:** Wow! So many reviews from you at once! I wanted to cry I was so happy! You're right, Luna is in Ravenclaw. I don't know what I was thinking... Hope you enjoy the chapters!  
**Peaceful Angel:** I don't really like how Hermione is acting here. She's completely gotten away from me! She was still being a little sissyish at the beginning of chapter 11, too. Maybe she'll shape up in the next few chapters...  
**Fazkleto:** Oh! You think my story is great? And you think it has warm humor? Oh my oh my oh my! I couldkiss you right now! But that might be a little weird... I realized after I had started writing the story that the timeline was completely messed up, as far as Lucius and Narcissa and the Marauders ages go. I guess this will have to be extremely A/U, then. And it _is _sad that Remus can't see Sirius. They make such a perfect couple that it breaks my heart every time I read OotP (even though they technically aren't even together in the books - they're together in my mind).  
**Shania Maxwell:** Glad you're looking forward to the next one! Here's two!  
**Ashes of Stars:** Even short reviews like yours make my day. It reminds me that people like the story enough to take the time to post a comment.  
**suishoku-ketsurui:** I hope this is soon enough for you! I don't always get them uploaded immediately after I right them because I don't have the internet at my house (or at least, I'm not allowed to use it), so I have to go to the library...But here's two chapters for you!

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**Next Chapter:** Sunday night arrives and they test the device. insert foreboding music here


	13. XIII: Father's Favorite

**Loss**

_by Breninblack_

Disclaimer: All belongs to the ever-wonderful JKR.

Chapter Notes: Thank you, everybody, for the plethora of reviews. It was greatly appreciated. I'm sorry it's taken me so long to get this chapter up. A former teacher of mine is having a baby later this month and I've been trying to write a short story to make a picture book out of, but I've been having little luck. If anyone has any ideas, feel free to let me know! I would love your suggestions.

Also, I sort of lied in the last A/N when I said that they'd test the device in the next chapter. It will definitely be in the next one, though. If it's not, I give you permission to burn me at the stake.

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**Chapter Thirteen: Father's Favorite**

Harry had been out on the quidditch pitch in the evening before, but never this late. He would have checked the time, but it was so dark he couldn't even see his hands. The light from the castle had gotten him about half way to the pitch, but it was no longer enough to continue by.

'Lumos,' Harry muttered as he pulled out his wand. The small light illuminated about four feet in front of him, but it was enough to get by with.

A chilled breeze swept over him and Harry cursed himself for not bringing a cloak. He had been in such a hurry to find Draco that as soon as he'd seen that his blonde companion was out on the pitch, he'd dashed out of the tower without even saying goodnight to Hermione.

Just as Harry reached the base of the stands, the moon decided to come out from its hiding place behind the clouds. The pitch was immediately bathed in a white light and Harry took the opportunity to look for Draco.

It didn't take long for Harry's seeker eyes to search out the blonde boy. Draco was flying low to the ground and moving at a sluggish pace. He appeared to be trying to follow a straight line that he had magicked onto the ground and he was doing a horrible job of it.

'Hey,' Harry said as he walked up to Draco. The blonde boy started and looked around for the voice.

'Oh. It's you,' was all he said.

'How's it going?' Harry asked, nodding to the broom.

'Not well.'

'Do you want some help?'

'I don't need your bloody help! I can do this on my own!' Draco said, irritated. Harry shrank back and watched his boyfriend struggle to fly in a straight line. He wavered and wove in a jagged line and then turned around and tried again. He repeated these actions almost a dozen times, with little improvement each time. Finally, he angrily cast aside his broom and threw himself onto the ground next to Harry.

'This is all such a fucking mess,' he exclaimed, holding his head in hid 'I can't do a bloody thing! I've lost all coordination. I can't even use my wand properly!'

'Mind if I try something?' Harry asked. Draco nodded meekly and Harry took his wrists. He moved them around in circles slowly, then eased them up and down. 'I read this in a muggle magazine once. I was browsing while my aunt Petunia shopped because she hates to be seen with me, but she's too afraid to leave me alone in the house. Afraid I'll blow it up or something. Anyway, the periodical was about arthritis and it said that you should try to gently move the joint from one end position to the other.'

'Ow!' Draco cried. 'That hurt!'

'It may hurt a little, but try using your wand.'

Draco took out his wand and gave it a little flick. His movements were still jerky, but it seemed to cause him slightly less pain to make them.

'It won't fix the problem right away, but if you do the right therapy exercises, it should help more in the long run.'

Draco looked at Harry in amazement. For weeks he had been forcing himself to painfully write and use his wand in an attempt to rehabilitate himself, but in less than five minutes Harry had reduced the pain considerably.

'Has anyone ever told you you're a god?' Draco asked, pulling Harry in for a kiss.

'It's been suggested,' Harry murmured, kissing Draco back. The two boys quickly lost themselves in each other, reveling in the taste of each other. Harry explored Draco's lemon flavored mouth with his tongue, playfully fighting with Draco's own tongue.

_I could do this forever,_ Harry thought.

But he quickly realized that forever was going to be cut short when a glaring light shone down on them.

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'Shit,' gasped Hermione. She had known they would be down on the field - she'd checked at the map - but she figured they'd be talking or walking around or something. Never in a million years would she have thought they'd be doing this.

She watched as the two boys quickly sprang apart and whipped out their wands. Hermione quickly muttered a spell to cast an overhead light so they could all see each other clearly.

'It's not what it looks like, Hermione,' Harry said quickly. Draco gave him a look like he was obviously mad if he thought she'd believe that steaming load of bollocks. 'We were just . . . we were . . . '

'Look, Harry, as much as I would LOVE to hear you lie about why you were out here kissing Malfoy, I'm afraid we haven't got the time. Lucius is in the castle. He's looking for his son and he's not happy.'

'Shit,' Draco muttered. 'I didn't think he'd actually come.'

'_What_?' Harry asked in astonishment. 'Did you do something to provoke him?'

'I may have said a few things to Pansy,' Draco said, shuffling his feet.

'A few things like what?' Harry demanded.

'I may have mentioned something about not marrying her.'

'That's all?'

'There might have been some words about not having any alliances . . . '

'And?'

'I may have said something about the dark lord being a pathetic man and that she was an ugly cow.

'And I might have told her to tell my father that Srren sends his love.'

'Jesus, Draco! Do you _want_ to die?' Harry exclaimed.

'I didn't think he'd actually come! After all those weeks they never even bothered coming, I didn't think he'd start now. I'm sorry.'

'Look. We really don't have time for this. Dumbledore and Snape are doing their best to ward your father off, but it's only a matter of time before he ends up out here. I've brought the invisibility cloak for Draco to hide under. I'm going to lead him to the Room of Requirement and Harry, you're going to go straight back to the tower. No arguing!'

Harry was about to protest, but Hermione gave him a look that silenced him. She threw the invisibility cloak at Draco. Much to Hermione's surprise, Harry gave Draco a quick kiss and then sprinted back to the castle.

'Granger, you said yourself. It's not like we've got all day,' Draco said. He had already put on the cloak and Hermione found it a little disquieting that he had the advantage of invisibility. Malfoy was the very first person she'd never want to in this situation with.

She started off briskly toward the castle, fast enough that she could hear Malfoy having to jog to keep up. She led them through the halls, dodging Mrs Norris on several occasions and avoided the high traffic corridors, until they safely reached the Room of Requirement. After checking the hall for any prying eyes with a quick incantation, she crossed the portrait of Barnabas the Barmy three times and let Draco into the room.

Once inside, Draco immediately took off the cloak and handed it back to Hermione. He then took a seat in one of the chintz armchairs in front of the fire place.

Hermione gazed around the room, taking in the lived in quality it possessed. There was a kitchenette with dirty dishes; there were papers all over the table; and, most peculiarly, there was a queen-sized bed that looked very much as if two people had slept in it. It seemed that Harry had some serious explaining to do.

'Thank you for the escort, Granger,' Draco commented, conjuring himself a cup of coffee, 'though I'm quite sure I could have managed alone. Feel free to leave anytime.'

'Fat chance, Malfoy,' Hermione replied smugly. 'I have orders from the headmaster to stay with you until further notice. We could be here all night.'

'Great. I have to spend the night with the Hogwarts' most stuck up know-it-all.'

'Hey, you've got it good. _I_ have to spend the night with the world's most arrogant sod.'

'Ouch,' Draco said, clutching his chest in mock offense. 'Surely I'm not so horrible to deserve the title of most arrogant sod in the entire _world_, am I?'

'Let's see. You've only tortured and taunted all of my friends for the past five years; referred to me by every racial slur in the book and then some; and tried to get Harry, Ron and I in more than a little trouble on several occasions. Yes, I think that title suits you quite nicely.'

'To be fair, you've not exactly been nice, either.'

Hermione scoffed. 'Name one time that you haven't completely deserved my unkindness.'

'That time in third year, when you slugged me.'

'You called Hagrid pathetic!'

'Everyone calls Hagrid any number of things.'

'I don't. Harry and Ron don't.'

'That's because you have an unnatural friendship with the oaf. One that I fail to understand, I might add.'

'You wouldn't know what a friend was if it danced naked in front of you,' Hermione spat.

'Quite the contrary, Granger, honey. If someone was dancing naked in front of me, you'd better believe I'd be paying attention.'

'Even if it was Pansy?'

Draco considered this for a moment. 'Yes, I suppose. That girl is the biggest prude you'll ever meet.'

'What about me?'

'What are you trying to do, Granger? Come onto me and kill me at the same time? Of course not.'

'You've never seen me naked, so how do you know I don't have the hottest body at Hogwarts?'

'I know you don't because _I_ have the hottest body in school, hands down.'

'Whatever,' Hermione said dismissively. 'The point is, you can't come up with any time where you haven't deserved exactly what you've gotten.'

'What about up in the Hospital wing, right after they found Harry. I don't think I deserved to be deemed worse than my father. If I was that bad, I'd have killed handed over Harry to the Dark Lord with an apple in his mouth by now.'

'How was I supposed to know you'd changed? In fact, I'm still not completely convinced.'

'You heard what I told Pansy. It's all true. You'd have to be stupid not to have an inkling of what's going on between Harry and I. And my homicidal psycho father is storming the castle, on a rampage to kill me. What more do you want from me?'

Hermione had to admit that she had been considering Malfoy in a new light since the accident. Seeing someone's brains splayed out on your lap had that effect sometimes. 'It's not that easy to just forgive and forget, Malfoy.'

'No one's asking you to,' Draco replied, his voice suddenly devoid of the vague malice it had held before.

'Harry seems to have done it.'

'Harry and I have had harrowing near death experiences,' Draco said matter-of-factly. 'Naturally our lives will be different because of it.'

'But it doesn't make you . . . ' Hermione started. She wasn't sure she wanted to acknowledge it.

'Gay? No. Most gay people are born that way, but they don't necessarily realize it right away.'

Hermione was quiet for a moment, considering the idea of Harry being gay.

'Does it bother you? That Harry might be gay.'

'Lord no. Plenty of people I know are gay. My uncle, a couple of my cousins. And I always had the sneaking suspicion about my best friend from primary school, but I could never be sure.

'No, what bothers me is the fact that he's chosen you to be gay with. You don't exactly have a good history with us, you know. Couldn't he have picked someone like Seamus, or Dean?'

'Seamus is notorious for his love 'em and leave 'em policy.'

'But why you?'

'That is something you'll have to take up with Harry,' Draco said, stretching out on his chair. Hermione rose from her seat at the table and sat down in the second arm chair, next to Draco.

'I have a question,' Hermione stated. She'd always been curious about Draco, though she would have never admitted it.

'I have an answer. You go first,' Draco replied smoothly.

'Did you ever buy into the whole "purifying the wizarding race" shtick?'

Draco went pensive for a moment, as if he was considering whether or not to keep talking to her. Finally, he spoke: ' I don't think anyone's ever asked me that. They all just assume that I'm a part of it all.

'When I was little, I used to think I believed it, but in retrospect, I think it was probably more of an attempt to please my father. But I guess I've never taken all that much interest in his line of work. He's probably storming around here tonight because he's finally had the last straw with me.'

'Do you think he'd actually do something to you, if he found you? I mean, you're his son.'

'Apparently Harry hasn't told you what happened to my brother. He's only in the spirit world because Lucius put him there.'

'Oh,' was all Hermione said. A peaceful fell over them, both Hermione and Draco lost in thought.

She had known that Lucius was evil through and through, but until Draco's accident she had always assumed that he still took the time to be his father. Lucius and Narcissa's failure to show up after their son cracked his skull open had shown her how wrong she had been. The news that Lucius had put Draco's brother through a death veil only further proved it. How horrible it must be to have parents who cared so little about you. Yet Draco seemed to have turned out okay . . . for the most part. He seemed to have come into his own since the accident and she had come to the conclusion that maybe he wasn't so horrible after all. She understood now that the past five years of torture had been a Malfoy thing and not a Draco thing. Sure, he could still be a bit catty and arrogant, but she wasn't sure he'd be any different if he had been born to a family on the light side.

'Malfoy,' Hermione started. 'I just want to say--'

There was a knock at the door before Hermione could get another word out. The door opened and Dumbledore entered.

'Good evening,' Dumbledore said, nodding to them both. Hermione and Draco stood to greet him. 'I trust things have been uneventful for you?'

'Yes, sir,' they both replied simultaneously.

'Good, good. I'm glad to hear that.' Dumbledore turned to Hermione. 'Miss Granger, I want to thank you for spending your evening with Mr Malfoy. Come speak with me at a convenient time about your extra credit.'

Hermione blushed. 'I don't think it's necessary anymore, Headmaster. I have made an error in judgement and I will no longer be needing it. Thank you, though.'

'Very well,' Dumbledore replied. His face remained passive, but Hermione thought she saw a slight twinkle in the old man's eye. He reached into a pocket in his robes and removed a small tin. 'I'm afraid it's well past your bedtime, but could I interest you a lemon drop before you go?'

'Sure,' she said, taking one of the sweets. She nodded her farewells to the Headmaster and then to Draco, who quirked an eyebrow at her before she turned and left.

€€€€€

The next morning Harry went to the Room of Requirement before he did anything else. Dumbledore had told him the night before that Draco was going to have to stay there for a couple of days for precautionary reasons, to keep him safe from his father and any sabotage attempts that might be made by his fellow Slytherins. Harry had planned to go and spend the night there after Dumbledore had finished talking with Draco, but the Headmaster had stayed in there for so long that Harry eventually fallen asleep waiting for him to leave.

It being Sunday, Harry had a lot of nervous energy that caused him to hop up and down on one foot or the other. When he got to the Room of Requirement, Draco hadn't even gotten dressed and was just pouring himself a cup of coffee.

'Hey, sleepyhead,' Harry said, ruffling Draco's hair. Draco glared at him, but Harry was completely oblivious. He sat down across from Draco and started bobbing his foot up and down. After a few minutes, he got restless and jumped up and started pacing the room. When he got bored with that, he started clanging around the kitchen.

'Are you all right?' Draco asked suspiciously. Harry was acting very odd.

'Hmm? What? Me?' Harry replied, turning around.

'No. The entire legion of death eaters that just apparated behind you.'

Harry jumped and looked behind him. Feeling incredibly stupid, he came back to the chair and sat down again. 'I'm nervous,' he admitted. 'Remus is going to be coming tonight and we're supposed to use that orby thingy and we don't really know if it'll work because no one's ever tried it and if it doesn't work, well, who knows what'll happen. We might get stuck there, or we might die. In any case if I can't come back then entire wizarding world will fall to ruin because of me.'

'Whoa. Slow down. Take a deep breath. Have you had any sleep?'

'About 3 hours worth.'

'Come here,' Draco said, standing up and pulling him toward the bed. 'I have an idea.'

Harry followed him to the bed obediently. Draco began unbuttoning his shirt and slowly pulled it off him. Next he moved to his pants and then his boxers until Harry was left in only his socks. Draco began to unbutton his own clothes, but Harry pushed his hands aside and did it himself.

When they were both unclothed, Draco kissed Harry so slowly that Harry was sure he would melt into a pile of goo. He eased Harry down onto the bed and Harry went willfully. He teased Harry's nipples with his tongue, causing Harry to arch up into him and beg for more. When Harry could no longer take anymore of Draco's incessant teasing and playful nipping, Harry whispered what he wanted in Draco's ear.

Draco grinned mischievously. 'You sure?'

Harry nodded.

Draco flipped Harry onto his stomach and grabbed a bottle from the side table. He quickly prepared himself and with one swift move he entered Harry.

Harry winced at the initial pain. But as Draco began to slowly thrust inside him, the pain receded. Draco was moving in steady, rhythmic movements and Harry was sure he was going to die from the sensation.

The boys came in unison and Draco collapsed next to Harry. Harry rolled over, performed a quick cleaning spell and snuggled up to Draco.

'I love you,' he murmured as he fell asleep. Draco lie there for a long while after Harry had fallen asleep, thinking. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't shake off the foreboding feeling that was lurking in his stomach.

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**A/N:** So this was mainly a filler chapter because I needed to establish some conflict and pass the time. But I hope you enjoyed it all the same. My goal is to finish the story within the next few weeks, though I'm not sure if that will actually happen because I've got a line up of concerts I want to attend. We'll see. But I promise you I won't leave you hanging for long. :)

I love my reviewers like I love cheesecake:  
**Volleypickle: **I didn't get this up as soon as I would have liked, but it's here now! I'm glad you liked the last two chapters!  
**Ashes of Stars: **Thanks!  
**suishoku-ketsurui:** I'm glad it's starting to get interesting. Does that mean it wasn't interesting before?  
**fifespice:** I'm sorry there was no device this time. I decided some other things needed to happen first. There will be deviceness next time!  
**Peaceful Angel:** Glad you think the hand job was believeable. Hope this sex scene was believeable too! And more Hermione...I think she was in a better mood for this chapter. .  
**JitsaruJakara:** Gosh! You make me blush! Drake does look good with just about anything. I imagine he also looks pretty damn good with nothing. . I think a party is a great idea! WOO-HOO!  
**Emiko33333333:** Thanks for the comment! I'll be sure to keep writing!  
**Shania Maxwell:** yes, finally. It took, what, 12 chapters for them to FINALLY hook up, but they did it and boy are they enjoying it!  
**Shakespeares Whore:** Someone else who loves Phoenix Song? OMG! hugs I love you already! I must have read it a bazillion times, too. I can't get enough of it!And I'm absolutely honored that you'd put my little fic up there with Xylodemon's.  
**Darknessmiko:** I'm so glad that you love the story! It makes me so happy when I get reviews like yours!

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**Next Chapter: **They really will test the orb next time. I swear it. 


	14. IXV: Don't Deconstruct

**Loss**

_by Breninblack_

Disclaimer: All belongs to the ever-wonderful JKR.

Chapter Notes: I sincerely apologize for the brevity of this chapter and the delay in its uploadation (is that even a word? Spell check thinks not). It's ridiculously short and that's because I haven't had much time to write because my grandmother came for a visit this week (she was here for four days) and it's universally understood that when relatives come to stay, you are required to spend nearly all, if not the entirety of your free time with them. Moreover, it's been REALLY hot here - in the upper nineties - and I've been trying to spend as much time in the air-conditioned rooms of the house as possible. But you probably don't care, so I'll stop rambling and let you get on with the chapter! Enjoy!

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**Chapter Fourteen: Don't Deconstruct**

_Judging from picture books,  
apparently Heaven is a partly cloudy place.  
And if the sky opened up and they let you in,  
and gave you a formal invitation,  
would you go?_

When Harry awoke, he was alone. There was a depression in the bed next to him where Draco had been lying, now vacant and cold.

Harry grappled for his glasses and put them on. The rusty watch on his wrist said four o'clock and Harry groaned. Remus was due in an hour and he hadn't even begun to clean up. Not to mention he needed a shower. He reeked of sex.

Getting out of bed, Harry made a bee line for the shower. He figured he could be done in half an hour and still have time to clean up the room before his former professor arrived.

When he walked out of the bathroom sometime later, clad in only a towel and trying to get the water out of his ear, he was confronted by the most alarming sight of Remus, Draco, Hermione, Ron and Dumbledore seated around their round table, apparently waiting for him.

Harry nearly dropped his towel in surprise. He gaped for a few minutes, staring in compete paralyzing shock at his loved ones. Remus was looking rather amused, as was Draco. Hermione was blushing a rather curious shade of pink, Ron was looking duly embarrassed and steadfastly staring at the table, and Dumbledore was offering him a lemon drop as if nothing were amiss.

'Right. I'll just be going back into that room now. Don't mind me at all,' Harry said sheepishly, quickly backing up into the bathroom.

A few minutes later, after Draco had brought him some clothes, he reentered the room, this time suitably more clothed and less caught off guard.

'Has someone died, or are we all just gathering around to have tea and a quick chat?' Harry asked as he sat down.

'Harry!' Hermione chided, slapping him on the shoulder. 'You shouldn't joke about things like that!'

'We are gathered here for a variety of reasons,' Dumbledore said. 'Mr Lupin because he has been aiding your research. I because I am most curious about the ordeal. And Miss Granger and Mr Weasley because they wished to see you off.'

'I looked into the list of aurors missing and consulted with the elder Mr Malfoy and his partner, which was an odd experience. Working with someone who doesn't really exist can make you feel a bit mad.'

'How many people?' Harry asked.

'The initial list was well over 500, but we've narrowed it down to less than a tenth of that. 42, to be exact.'

'Okay. So we've got a list. We just have to do it now,' Harry said affirmatively.

'Not quite,' Remus said. 'There are some things that haven't been discussed yet.'

'Like how you're going to get back,' Hermione said.

'Or how you're even gonna find these people,' Ron offered.

'Okay . . . so how do we find them?' Harry asked impatiently. The more they sat around talking, the thinner his courage was waning.

'We don't know exactly. We figure they're probably sorted by name or the date they were separated. I've included both on your list.'

'And how do we get back?'

'We're still a little fuzzy on that. No one's ever tried this before, but Srren and Gus said that you have to perform a Triton spell.

'A Triton spell!' Hermione exclaimed, standing up. 'That's something they don't even teach level five Aurors! It's highly classified magic! Not to mention extremely unsafe and ridiculously difficult! They could die!'

'I'd never heard of it before they mentioned it. It is indeed classified magic, something only attempted by highly trained professionals and, of course, dark wizards.'

'So basically what you're all saying is that he and the ferret have to travel to some other level of existence, somehow find and release some 40 odd people to God only knows where and then try to return by performing a dark curse strictly limited to only the highest level of aurors?' Ron asked incredulously. 'You're bloody mad! The whole lot of you!'

'Ron, don't be so upset. We'll be fine,' Harry said, attempting to placate him.

'To be frank, I don't give a pixie's arse what happens to the spawn of Satan's right-hand man,' Ron said. 'You are my best friend, Harry. I can't let you risk everything.'

'Would you stop the heroics already!' Draco exclaimed. 'Don't you realize that he'll still do this if it kills him? Nothing you or I say or do is going to make him change his mind. So you might as well give him your blessing, so that if God forbid something does happen to him your last words to him wouldn't be angry ones.'

Ron narrowed his eyes at Draco. He appeared to be considering his enemy's suggestion, however reluctant. Finally he spoke: 'Since when do you care so much about Harry's welfare?'

Harry felt Draco step closer to him, but just as he did, Harry scooted his chair forward, further away from Draco. Ron appeared not to have noticed, but Hermione was looking at him with a furrowed brow and Remus with a sad expression on his face. Dumbledore, however, remained his goofy, aloof self.

To Draco's credit, he let it slide. He asked Remus how to perform the Triton spell and in return he received a page of written instructions. He thanked Remus, went to one of the bookshelves and retrieved the steel orb.

'Well,' he said, placing the orb on the table. 'Best to get it over with. Are you ready, Harry?'

Harry, feeling guilty and eager to get out of the stuffy room, agreed immediately. He stood next to Draco and took a deep breath.

This was it. The moment of truth. He had decided that now was not the time to be thinking about what would happen if this didn't work, but rather to be focusing on being able to physically hug his godfather again.

With a goodbye to his loved ones that was assured to be temporary, Harry closed his eyes and he and Draco pressed the top of the steel orb.

Then everything went black.

€€€€€

Harry found himself awaking for the second time that day. Only this time he couldn't figure out where he was. Maybe it was because he was surrounded by white puffs of what looked like cotton candy (and smelled like fresh linen) or maybe it was the fact that he was now dressed in all white, but something told him he wasn't in Kansas anymore.

'Draco?' he called out. 'Where are you?'

He looked around wildly for Draco, but all he saw was an endless expanse of white.

There was a groan from a few feet away and Harry crawled toward it, his knees sinking into the cloudlike substance to an unseen solid surface. He found Draco lying on his back, holding his head gingerly.

'Draco, are you okay?' Harry asked.

'My head . . . ' Draco groaned, his eyes screwed shut. 'I think I had too much to drink last night.'

'Drake, you didn't have anything to drink last night.'

Draco opened one eye. 'What did you say?'

Harry chuckled and shook his head. 'Nope. No drinking for at least 48 hours. If not longer.'

'Then why the hell is my bloody head throbbing like a drum?'

'Let me take a look at it,' Harry said, gently lifting Draco's head and inspecting it. He was no mediwitch, but he'd taken a first-aid course over the summer, so he knew what to look for. 'No bumps or bleeding. Must be a concussion.'

Draco sat up slowly and looked around. 'Where the fuck are we?' he exclaimed, taking in the whiteness around them. 'And what the fuck are we wearing?'

Draco was wearing all white, too: white leather pants and a two-sizes-too-small T-shirt. Harry looked down at his own clothes and found he was wearing a sleeveless fishnet top and similarly tightfitting pants. Bewildered, all he could was shrug.

There was an awkward moment of silence while Harry looked at Draco and Draco looked at his hands.

'Well,' he said, abruptly getting up on his feet. 'We should try to figure out where we are and what we're doing here.'

'We were trying to get to the place where all the veil victims' bodies are stored,' Harry said. 'But this doesn't look like the right place.'

'Right,' Draco said. He looked around and decided on his left and said, 'Let's go this way.'

He started walking and Harry tried to catch up. Moving quickly in this weird cloudy stuff was increasingly difficult; it was like trying to run through water. They walked for what seemed like an hour making no progress; there seemed to be only whiteness everywhere. Harry was starting to get a little worried, thinking maybe this hadn't been such a good idea.

Suddenly he walked right into Draco, who had apparently come to a stop.

'Shit,' Draco said.

Harry looked up and immediately swore as well. There was a large whooshing sound and the set of pearly white gates that stood before them opened up.

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**A/N:** Please don't kill me! O.O 

I got reviews, babe:  
**fifespice:** thanks for the review!  
**volleypickle16:** Hey another great review! ;)  
**JitsaruJakara:** Ooh, thankies! I may have some pretty good lines, but you know who has some of the best? Snippy-And-Snarky. Their fic Trading Spaces is one of the funniest fics I have ever read. I was literally in tears when I read parts of it. It was great. As for the duct tape and chickens? I've never heard of that combination before...maybe we should try it out sometimes. . and you're right. Harry is an insomniac. Sometimes. ;)  
**Peaceful Angel:** I'm glad you think the sex scene was believeable. It felt a little short, but I wanted to test the waters before I tried anything too extravagant. I hope you like this chapter! I love getting your reviews!  
**GoldilocksIsBack:** Thanks for the review! I love Harry/Draco and Sirius/Remus, too. I'm actually planning on writing another fic that will be mainly Sirius/Remus after this one is done. You should keep a watch out for it...:D

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**Next Chapter:** Ooh, baby do you know what that's worth? Ooh, heaven is a place on earth. They say in heaven love comes first. We'll make heaven a place on earth . . .


	15. XV: Shades of Gloria

**Loss**

_by Breninblack_

Disclaimer: All belongs to the ever-wonderful JKR.

Chapter Notes: I'm sorry to say that I have bad news for you all. After this chapter, there won't be another one for probably at least a week. L This is because summer is evil in Minnesota. Let me explain: it's been getting up to the higher 90s (degrees, that is) and it's been VERY humid. Because my house is older and well…slow, the power goes out a lot in the summer. Well, it's been going off on and off (if that makes sense) for a while now and it finally went kaput on Sunday. Meaning nothing electronic in my house is useable (except for a light in the kitchen, the bathroom and the fridge). I don't know when we're getting it fixed, but hopefully it'll be soon. Until then, enjoy this chapter!

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**Chapter Fifteen: Shades of Gloria**

_Oh Evil Angel, tear down the monuments  
Evil Angel, bury the coat of arms  
And rebuild for me these memories  
For to see my depth of sorrow_

There was no choice but to go forward. There was, quite literally, nothing for eternity in every direction.

Pearly gates could only mean one thing. It meant they were . . .

'Dead,' Harry said. 'It was all for nothing. We're dead.'

'It's not official until I see it in writing,' Draco said sharply.

Draco walked forward, not bothering to see if Harry was following. He didn't bother to see if Harry had caught up or to wait for him. He just kept moving forward.

Beyond the gates were more white clouds. Eventually they came to a lone desk in the middle of . . . well, nowhere. Seated at the desk was a plump little lady with black curls and pink glasses. Her hair and glasses stuck out in the vast sea of white oblivion.

_Like dog piss in the snow,_ Draco thought.

'Welcome to Heaven. I'll be with you in a moment,' the woman said. She was wearing a headset that was connected to a muggle phone. She pressed a button and began speaking to someone on the other line. 'Thank you for holding, Mrs. Bernstein. There's an opening for --'

Draco pressed the receiver down and sneered at the woman.

'I don't have the bloody patience to wait around all day,' he hissed, 'so I'd appreciate it if you would kindly direct me toward the exit.'

'There is no exit,' the woman said simply.

'Then someone's got some fucking explaining to do.'

The woman ruffled herself in a way that was reminiscent of a budgie. 'We can't just stop everything for you, young man. A certain order has to be kept.'

'I've never cared much for order,' Draco said dismissively. He sighed. There was no need to take his frustration out on this poor woman. Trying a more polite approach, he continued. 'We're on a tight schedule here and we need to be on our way as soon as possible.'

'Sorry, kiddo,' the woman said, with a cruel chuckle. 'Once you end up here, you don't ever leave.'

'Surely there's an exception.'

'Nope.'

'Would it help if you heard our situation?'

'Afraid not. But something tells me I don't really have choice.'

'My friend and I are here because we're trying to get to the place where they store the bodies of the victims of veils. By some mistake, we've end up here and we need to get going as soon as possible.'

'You're tying to save someone from the veil?' the plump woman asked, smacking her gum loudly. 'Hold on a second.'

The woman picked up the phone and dialed a very long string of numbers. 'Hello, Blanche. This is Rita. We've got two young gents here who claim to be trying to get to the VEST. What should I do with them?'

The woman said a few more words and then hung up the phone. 'You're supposed to wait. You can sit over there.' She pointed over to a couple of bland looking couches that most certainly had not been there before.

'Oh, and you're gonna need to fill out these forms.' She handed him a large stack of papers that must have been an inch thick. At least.

Dragging his feet, Draco begrudgingly took the proffered clip board and took a seat. Harry followed and sat down beside him.

'What's all that for?' Harry asked.

'I'm trying to get us out of here. Do you mind? This paperwork isn't going to get itself done.'

Draco continued to fill out the forms, checking boxes and signing pages, making sure to read everything twice. It kept asking him about the nature of his death; why he had died; when he had died; what he had done, in detail, what he had been doing for 24 hours before his death. It seemed rather pointless, really, considering he wasn't dead. This was merely a bureaucratic mistake and nothing more.

He finished the paperwork and brought it over to the woman at the desk. She began going over each page individually, reading his answers while Draco stood there impatiently. About half way through, she looked up at him, smiled, held a finger up and began making a call.

'Reggie, hello. This is Rita. Yes, the kids are fine. Caitlin is going to play Dorothy in her school production of th Wizard of Oz, and Donnie is starting soccer in a few weeks.'

Draco cleared his throat and the lady snapped back to reality. 'Well, anyway, Reggie, I was calling to ask you about something. We've got a young man here filling out an intake form and he's insisting that he's not supposed to be dead. Funny thing is, he's also insisting he's trying to get to the VEST.

'Uh-huh. Alright. Yes. Sounds good. Thanks, Reggie. Say hi to Thelma for me.' The woman hung up the phone and picked up again and dialed another number.

'Hello, Daisy? This is Rita from Intake. I'm in a bit of a spot here and Reggie from Logistics told me I should speak with you.

'Yes, we have two young men here who are trying to get to the VEST. I don't know how they know about it, but they're quite eager to get there.

'You're sending someone down? Thanks so much. Goodbye.'

The woman looked up at Draco and smiled again. 'They'll be sending someone down momentarily. Please take a seat. There are some magazines you can look at, if you'd like.'

Draco sat down again, this time in a huff. Trying to get anything done in Heaven, it turned out, was just like trying to get anything done at the Ministry; it involved reams of paper work and endless waiting. At the rate they were going, they would never get out of here and Voldemort would strike and there would be nothing for them to go home to. He was loathe to admit it, but Harry was right. It was all for nothing. They might as well be dead.

After sometime a tall strawberry blonde woman in a flowing white robe approached them. She was carrying a file of papers and when she reached them she held out her hand. 'Welcome, gentlemen, to Heaven. My name is Gloria and I am Head Ombudsman for the Ministry of Heaven.'

'You're what?' Harry asked.

'Ombudsman,' she repeated. 'It means I've been appointed by the Ministry to investigate any complaints lodged against the Ministry or the Council by our patrons. I hear you're trying to get to the VEST.'

'We're trying to get to where they store the victims of veils, if that's what you mean,' Harry said.

The woman gave them the kind of smile that's meant to make people feel inferior for not knowing something. 'Certainly. If you'll just come this way.'

Draco and Harry followed the woman past the desk and to a plain door that had also not been there before. They entered it and both Harry and Draco gasped at what lay behind it.

Before them was a sprawling crystal city. They appeared to be in a building, looking out and down at a magnificent maze of crystal skyscrapers and coliseums. The woman led them down a marble corridor to a large glass elevator and pressed the up button. The elevator arrived and she led the boys in.

'What is this place?' Harry asked in awe. He had never even imagined anything like this. It was breathtaking.

'This, gentlemen, is Heaven. Population Infinity. Right now we're in Central Station, the place where all new residents come and have their Intakes done. It's also home to the offices of all the Council and Ministry members. Out there is where the rest of the residents work and live. It's your new home.'

'This is all really great, but you're wrong. This is not our new home. We don't have any intention of staying here.'

'Of course you don't,' Gloria said, smiling condescendingly again. 'Can I get you something to eat?'

'I'm starving!' Harry exclaimed. 'What about you, Draco?'

'I'm not hungry,' Draco muttered, turning to look out across the city.

'Of course you're not. We'll order in from the Bowl & Cup for your friend once we get to my office. Ah, here we are.' The elevator doors opened and Gloria led them out. She walked down a series of corridors and finally to a large oak door. Opening it, she led them into a spacious office, decorated in the style of 1920's movie theaters, complete with Art Deco murals on the wall and sculptures lining the shelves.

'Have a seat,' she offered. The boys sat down and Gloria took a seat behind her large desk. 'What would you like to eat?'

'What's being served?' Harry asked politely.

Gloria laughed. 'Served. My, my. You certainly have quite a sense of humor. In Heaven, there are no menus. You can have whatever you want, whenever you want, wherever you want. No limitations, no consequences. You could spend eternity eating and you'd never gain a pound.'

'Really?' Harry asked, excitedly. 'Are you sure you don't want anything, Draco?'

Draco nodded.

'I'll have a slice of cheesecake, I think. And a glass of lemonade.'

'Of course you will.' The woman pressed a button on her desk and immediately there was a knock on the door. She opened the door from her desk and a young man came in, carrying a whole cheesecake and a pitcher of lemonade. 'Thank you, Rodrigo.'

The young man nodded and left the room. Harry cut himself a piece of the cheesecake and dished it onto a small plate. Immediately, he began to dig in.

'While this is all very nice of you, ma'am,' Draco began, 'it's like I said. We don't intend on staying here. We came here on a mission and we aren't going to stop until we complete it.'

'Of course you won't,' Gloria said. She flipped open the file she had been carrying and browsed some of the papers. 'It says here that you don't think you were supposed to die. That you're here because of a mistake.'

'Exactly,' Draco said.

'Forgive me. I haven't even asked your names.'

'I'm Draco Malfoy.' He looked over at Harry, who was still gorging himself on cheesecake, and rolled his eyes. 'He's Harry Potter.'

'Of course he is. Well, _Draco_, it is not uncommon for newly arrived residents to think they weren't meant to die. But the fact of the matter is, if you're here, it's your time and nothing can change that.'

'That's where I think you're wrong, _Gloria_. If that were really the case, that woman downstairs wouldn't have had to make a dozen calls to figure out what to do with us.'

'Rita is notorious for her lack of common sense. She is always making calls so she can be told what to do.'

'I also think that they wouldn't have called you all the way down from your spiffy little office up here just to talk to us. Unless, of course, we had unusual circumstances. I think that you know we're not supposed to be here.'

'Of course you do.' Gloria took off her glasses and set them down. 'Pardon me for being frank, Mr Malfoy, but you can't just waltz in here and expect to get right into the VEST. There are certain rules and regulations that must be abided by.'

'Well, if you'll pardon _me_ for being frank, I don't know what we're doing sitting here and eating. If there are things that need to be done in order to get to us out of here, we should be doing them.'

'Your insolence will get you no where, young man. There is something that still exists in Heaven that has long since been lost to most of the earthly realm and that is respect. I have many years of experience and status and I will not help a young brat who doesn't even know how to respect his elders.'

'Look,' Harry said, setting down his fork. 'I'm sorry about his attitude. He's been having a bit of a bad day today. He's normally much better behaved.'

'Of course he is, but that is no excuse to regard other people with such an ungrateful appearance.'

'The thing is, we're not just trying to go to the . . . vest, as you call it, for a joy ride. My godfather is stuck there. He got pushed through a veil during a fight against some Death Eaters at the British Ministry of Magic last spring. And his brother is stuck there, too. His own father, a known supporter of Voldemort - he's this powerful dark wizard who's hell bent on purifying the wizarding race–'

'I know who Voldemort is, thank you.'

'Anyway, Draco's brother got pushed into a veil by his own father. On purpose. We're trying to save them and some other people. We have to get over to the vest and get back.'

'Of course you do, but you don't realize what you'd be missing out on. No one who has ever come into heaven has ever wanted to leave. It's perfect here. It's _heaven._ It doesn't get any better than this.'

'Do you know who I am?' Harry asked. Gloria looked a little offended by this statement, but Harry quickly amended his statement. 'I mean no disrespect, ma'am. I ask completely out of pure curiosity. I am Harry Potter. It's written in a prophecy that I'm supposed to save the entire wizarding world from the Dark Lord. If I don't do it, no one else will be able to. I don't want to go back for selfish reasons. I can't stay here because the rest of the world depends on me.'

'Why are you so insistent on returning these VEST residents to their bodies?' Gloria asked skeptically.

'My parents were killed by the Dark Lord when I was a baby. My godfather is the closest thing I have left to family. And Draco's parents are homicidal psycho maniacs and his brother is the only family he has. The other people we want to save are those who we believe can help us fight the war against Voldemort.'

'Of course they are.' Gloria said, put her fingers in a steeple. She appeared to be thinking it over and Draco was begrudgingly amazed at Harry's persuasiveness. 'Well, gentlemen. You've made a very convincing argument. Lord Voldemort is not only a threat to the earthly realm, but a threat to Heaven as well. He and his followers have increased the incoming residents tenfold and it is messing up the cosmic balance of the universe. I'm afraid I have no choice but to send you on your way to the VEST.'

Harry stood up to shake Gloria's hand. 'Thank you, ma'am. Thank you so much. You don't know how much this means to me.'

'Of course I don't. You're very welcome. If you'll just wait in the corridor for a moment, I have to make a quick phone call.'

'Sure, sure. Thanks again,' Harry said. He elbowed Draco in the waist and Draco muttered a quick thanks, as well. Then they quickly went out into the hall.

€€€€€

The two young men shut the door behind them and Gloria, Head Ombudsman for the Ministry of Heaven, pressed a button on her desk. A man materialized in front of her, a wispy hologram hovering in the air.

'Namaste, Miss Gloria. How can I assist you this afternoon?'

'Hello, Raju. I need you to locate two of our residents for me and have them wait in the rotunda of Central Station.'

'Of course, madam. Are we looking for criminals today? Law breakers?'

'No, no. Nothing of the sort. Two quite ordinary residents. I believe they arrived around 15 or 16 years ago.'

'May I ask what for, madam?'

'I need their persuasive personalities.'

'Sure thing, madam. What are their names?'

'Lily and James Potter.'

* * *

**A/N:** Cue dramatic music. Cut to credits. 

If this were a movie and I was in charge of casting, I'd want Meryl Streep to play Gloria. She's quite skilled at being evil that way. I hope you enjoyed the chapter! I really enjoyed writing it! Don't forget to review!

Oh, by the way, I keep forgetting to credit when I use songs at the beginning of chapters. The song from this chapter is called Evil Angel by Rufus Wainwright (there are no words for how awesome Rufus is…). The title is the title of a song by Maura O'Connell (though I must confess I've never heard it…bless the powers of Google) that I found online.

I would like to thank the academy and all my wonderful fans. This ones for you:

**Peaceful Angel: **Glad you liked the chapter. And their white clothes. J

**Lilylikeslimes: **Ah, Lil. I'm glad you decided to finally read my story. J I will go to college for some sort of writing thing, at least as a minor (that's assuming I'm going to be majoring in something artistic…). We should collaborate. In fact, I should put that as an Author's Note…

**Fifespice: **Hopefully this chapter will have answered some of your questions. Although, if it didn't, I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to answer your questions anyway (but I will say that you're on to something with the harry-scooting-away-from-draco bit…). Thanks again for the review!

**JitsaruJakara: **Oh no! Now that you've valiantly killed yourself to protect your honor, you won't be able to review my story! Ah! The horror! I can't bare to think of it! I shall go mourn and weep to myself in a corner now. ;)

**GoldilocksIsBack:** I'm super glad you enjoyed the chapter! I hope you enjoy this one, too!

* * *

**Next Chapter:** Gloria


	16. XVI: Somewhere A Clock Is Ticking

**Loss**

_by Breninblack_

Disclaimer: All belongs to the ever-wonderful JKR.

Chapter Notes: Hello, hello! (I don't know why you say good bye, I say hello...okay, sorry, couldn't resist). Again, I apologize for the delay of this chapter. We got our power back (yay!) and I have been writing fervently ever since. Much to your probable excitement, this chapter clocks in at exactly 7 pages on my computer (give or take when you figure in margins and font size), so it's good and long for you to enjoy. As for the next chapter...I wouldn't count on seeing it before next week, but we'll see. As you will read, we're getting near the end of the story. Though I will do so again at the end of the story, I would like to thank all of the 25 people (last time I checked) who have this story on alert and those who have favorited it. I'm so happy that you're sufficently interested in my story to keep coming back to it. I would say more, but I've just realized how long of an a/n this is and I'm sure you'd rather just get on with the story. Enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter Sixteen: Somewhere A Clock Is Ticking**

Gloria rejoined the boys in the hall and clasped her hands together.

'Are you ready?' she asked, straightening her robes. Harry and Draco both nodded. 'Of course you are.'

She led them down the hall back to the glass elevator. It seemed to take an extraordinarily long time arriving and Gloria kept checking a little gold pocket watch, as if she were on a tight schedule.

Once in the elevator, Gloria spoke again: 'Boys, I urge you to take a good look now and when we are down in the atrium. No one who has ever seen heaven has ever been able to go back to the earthly realm.'

They arrived at the ground floor and stepped out of the elevator into the bustling room. It reminded the boys much of the entrance hall of the Ministry in London; people crossing the room, to and fro, their shoes clacking and clicking on the marble floors. Gloria asked them to wait by the information desk and then disappeared. Harry looked around avidly, eager to take in every detail of this magnificent place, while Draco just stood slumped against the wall.

Then Harry spotted something - or rather, someone - that caught his eye. Two someones. One was a woman, but she stood with her back to him and all he could see was her long red hair. She was speaking with a tall, raven haired man who wore wire-rimmed glasses.

Harry craned his neck over the crowd to see the couple. The woman turned around and Harry was sure his heart stopped.

There, standing across the rotunda, were his parents.

Harry started across the hall at a brisk walk that turned into a sprint. Draco looked up and watched, with a twinge of sadness, Harry go sprinting away from him.

'Mom! Dad! It's me, Harry!'

The couple turned and spotted him. To say they looked happy wouldn't exactly have been accurate. They had sad looks on their faces, like they were seven and it was Christmas, except they'd just found out St. Nick wasn't coming this year.

Harry was almost to them when suddenly Gloria appeared in front of him, causing him to stop short. He tried to get past her, but she stood her ground, her hand firmly clenched on his arm.

'You weren't thinking of going anywhere, were you, Mr Potter?' she asked, a barely audible hint of malice in her voice. She began to steer him back toward Draco, now gripping both of hi arms. 'I'm afraid it's time we get going. You said yourself that you have to be on your way as soon as possible. Don't you want to see your uncle again?'

Gloria gestured sharply to Draco and he followed them into a little room off the atrium. She tossed Harry into a chair and a small Indian man came forward to hold him there. Draco followed in mutely and sat behind him.

'Let me go! I have to see my parents!' Harry yelled. 'I have to see them.'

'I'm afraid that's not an option, Mr Potter,' Gloria said icily from a corner of the room. 'You see, because you're not staying here, you're not allowed to interact with the residents.'

'But I have to see them!' Harry repeated, beginning to cry even more.

Gloria looked sympathetically at him. 'I can see how much you miss your parents, dear. I wouldn't normally do this because the paperwork's already been filed, but considering that you lost them at such a young age, I would be willing to let you stay if you wanted to do so.'

'No,' Draco spoke up from the corner. 'He's doesn't want to stay.'

'How do you know what I want?' Harry yelled angrily at Draco.

Draco looked as if he was going to make a scathing remark, but then thought better of it. Instead, he said, 'Do you think you could give us a moment?'

'Of course we can. In fact, you don't really need me anymore. That door to your left will take you to the VEST and the door behind you will take you back out to the rotunda. It's up to you. But once you go through a door, it's final. There's no turning back.

'It was a _pleasure_ meeting you both. Good luck.' With that, Gloria and the Indian man left the room through a door that disappeared after them.

'You're not going to stay,' Draco said flatly.

'You can't tell me what to do.'

'It's in your best interest to come with me.'

'It's in _your _best interest to shut the hell up. Why in fuck's name would I want to follow you, after you've been cold and distant ever since we got here?'

'You're a fucking lie, Potter. A fake. Everyone's always raving about your near-holiness, how "Harry Potter is so brave and he's going to save us all." But it's all a load of bollocks, isn't it? When faced with the choice to literally give up your life just to be with your parents or to go give some 40-odd people their lives back, you opt for the easy way out. The entire world is depending on you to save them, but you'd rather give it up than wait till you're meant to go.'

'You don't know what it's like. You've had your parents all your life!'

'You think they were exactly the model parents? My father was too busy killing innocent people and my mother was too busy to doping herself up so she could forget it.'

'So you'd understand if you had the chance to have your parents be available that you'd take it no matter what the cost?'

'Not if the rest of the world needed me.'

'Well, I'm sorry I'm not the righteous person you are Draco,' Harry said calmly. He stood up, walked to the door behind them and put his hand on the door knob. 'But I've made my choice.'

Draco shook his head in disbelief. 'I should have known after your little display before we left that I didn't mean anything to you,' he said, dejectedly.

'What?'

'You couldn't even admit that we were a couple to your own best friend. Granger knew. The werewolf knew. I'm sure Dumbledore knew - that man knows bloody everything. The only one who didn't know was Weasley and you couldn't even tell him. I'm obviously not that important to you.'

'You don't understand. Ron wouldn't understand.'

'It's not just that. When Granger found us, you were so eager to supply that it wasn't what it looked like. They've been your friends for six years now and they've blindly followed you into deadly situations. Do you think they're going to care if you're dating me?'

Harry didn't have anything to say to that. All he could do was continue to cry.

'Let's face it, Harry. I just don't mean enough to you to risk your friendships and I don't mean enough for you to not want to die. If what you really want is to go through that door, then I won't stop you.'

Harry watched as Draco fought back his own tears. Unable to stop himself, he ran to Draco and hugged him fiercely.

'I'm so sorry, Draco. I'm so, so sorry,' he muttered, in-between kissing the other boy's neck. 'I don't know what I was thinking.'

'You just wanted to see your parents, that's all,' Draco said, still standing stiffly. 'C'mon. We've got people to rescue.'

€€€€€

Behind the door to their left was a greyness. Dull, drab and grey in the ugliest sense of the word. It was a large room lined with large glass cases, just like Srren and Gus had said it would be. They looked around at the vast number of cases and their hearts sunk a little.

'How are we ever going to find everyone?' Harry asked.

'We'll manage,' Draco said, stepping forward. He looked down at the rows and rows and never-ending rows of cases and tried to make himself be placated by his own lie.

He started forward, Harry not far behind him, toward the first row. He dug in his pocket - those ridiculous heaven outfits were gone, thank god - and pulled out the list. The first person on it was an Azeerly, Surpin.

Draco stepped forward and looked at the first case. It was labeled Aackerly, Christian.

'Shit,' Harry said, coming to stand next to him. 'This is gonna take ages.'

'We've got time,' was all Draco said, not wanting to betray his growing dismay.

They walked to the next aisle and to the next and to the next after that until they came to Ayzlyn, Judus. They finally found the right case and stood in front of it, gazing at the dark haired man in his thirties behind the glass.

'I hate to disrupt him,' Harry said. 'He looks so peaceful.'

'How do we break the glass?' Draco asked absently. He looked around the aisle for something heavy, but found nothing. With a shrug, Draco made a fist and struck the glass front.

'I wonder what he was--Bloody hell!' Harry exclaimed.

Several things happened at once. There was a loud crash and a creamy slime came oozing out of the case. The body inside the case simply blinked out of existence; one moment it was there and the next it was not. Before the two boys could get a word out about it, a sound much like a train gliding along a rickety track came rushing toward them.

'What was that?' Harry asked.

'What's _that_?' Draco asked, pointing down the aisle. At first it was hardly visible, but something was coming towards them. As it grew closer, the boys could see that it was a large ladder topped by a pudgy little figure.

'Eh! Wot er ya two doin'?' said the pudgy little man when the ladder came to a screeching halt in front of them. 'I bin kepin' dese cases 'ere quite clean. You's gots no right comin' in 'ere 'n breakin' 'em likes dat.'

'Who are you?' Harry asked.

The little man ruffed his collar. 'I chould be askin' ya da same ting!'

'I'm Harry. He's Draco. We've come here to rescue some people.'

'I ain't ever godden no visitas as long as I bin down 'ere. An' cert'nly no rescuas.'

'How long have you been down here?' Draco asked curiously. The man looked like he'd been down here in the dark for eons; he was paler than Snape himself.

'I bin kepin' dese cases clean fa CDXXXIX,' the man stated proudly.

'What?' Harry asked, utterly confused. He looked to Draco, whose face was screwed up in intense concentration.

'439 years?' he said at last.

'Dats wot I said, ain't it?'

'You've been down here all by yourself for all those years?'

'Don't be silly, boy. I bin surrounded by folk,' the man spread his arms out wide. 'I bin takin' care of all MMMM of dem.'

'That's 4,000,' Draco said to Harry.

'But they're not exactly great company, seeing as how they can't hear or speak,' Harry pointed out.

'Deys great listenas! Dey da best kind. Dey ain't judgemental, da best quality for a listena.'

'Do you think you could help us find some people? We need to rescue this list of people,' Draco handed him the list.

'I only gonna 'elp ya if ya come 'ave a cup o' tea wit meh.'

Harry and Draco looked at each other. 'Couldn't hurt, could it?' Harry whispered.

'Nah. How long can he talk for?' Draco replied.

'Sure. We'll have tea with you.'

'Now I ain't doin' it no otha way! I say, a cup o' tea and dat's mah final offa.'

'We said we'd do it.'

'Oh. Right. Yah. Okay, den. 'Op on up, den.' The little man beckoned them onto his ladder and they took off zooming down the aisle. The ladder ride reminded Harry much of the ride through Gringotts that he'd taken in his first year: bumpy and very, very, very fast. They whipped around corners at speeds that Harry was sure were going to rip the flesh off his face. Draco looked vaguely queasy, but the pudgy little man seemed to be enjoying every minute of the ride.

A short time later, they arrived at a small reception area. It looked similar to the reception area in Heaven, if you made everything grey and added a couple hundred years of dust. The little man led them back through a round door into a cozy little room with a small kitchen, a small bed and a small fireplace. There were two arm chairs seated in front of the fireplace to which the pudgy little man directed them. Harry sat down in one and Draco was about to sit down in the other when he noticed an ancient looking kneazle sitting on it. Draco bent down to pet the thing, but quickly withdrew his hand when the animal's back caved in as he began to pet it. Deciding the floor was a much better idea, Draco plopped himself down next to Harry's chair.

The pudgy little man made a pot of tea and poured three glasses before sitting down. He handed one to each of the boys and began to speak rapidly.

'I is so excited ta get sum visitas. I ain't eva had none befow. I ain't seen anotha livin' soul since I was in da wawr sum DC years ago! Did I eva tell ya about da time Frisky an' I were crawlin' through da tropical jungles o' Siberia?'

The pudgy man didn't give them time to point out that Siberia didn't have any jungles, let alone answer his question. He just kept talking.

'See, Frisky an' I, we was fightin' for da imperials and we was up dere on da batta front fightin' da mushywoka's and it was rainin' and...'

The pudgy little man's voice combined with his mindless story was more effective than the Draught of the Living Dead. The two boys fell asleep almost instantly. When they awoke some time later, they found that the pudgy little man had fallen asleep, too.

'Should we wake him?' Harry whispered.

'And risk him talking our ears off again? I don't think so,' Draco replied. 'I think we should go out and use his ladder while he's knocked out.'

'Don't you reckon that'll wake him?'

'Nah. Not if we stay far enough away. He won't hear a thing. Come on.'

The two boys left the little cubby hole of a living space and crept out to the ladder. On their way, Draco grabbed a large grey metal sculpture that sat on one of the reception coffee tables, causing several inches of dust to rise up in a mushroom cloud. Then they both climbed on and then stood there, waiting for it to move.

'Did you see how he worked it?' asked Draco.

'No,' Harry replied. He looked around for a button of some sort and when he found none, he decided that shouting at it would be a good idea. 'Go! Move! Ahead!'

'Shh! He'll wake up! Do you think there is a magic word?'

'Abra Cadabra?' Harry suggested with a laugh. Much to their surprise, the ladder started to slowly crawl along the shelf. 'How do we steer it?'

'Say a name.'

'Clunie, Samai,' Harry said clearly. The ladder picked up speed and within seconds they had arrived at the correct case.

'Well, that was fun,' Harry said, dusting of his clothes.

'Not as fun as this will be,' Draco said as he raised the metal sculpture to the glass.

€€€€€

Within two hours, the two boys had successfully released all 42 of the bodies, as well as those belonging to Sirius, Srren and Gus. They were both exhausted and their arms hurt from swinging the metal sculpture so many times.

'Thank God that's done,' Harry said, wiping his brow. 'Now we just have to figure out how to do that spell and we'll be home free.'

Draco nodded absently, his eyes unfocused and glassy.

'Draco? Are you okay?' Harry asked worriedly.

Draco remained unreachable and Harry began to panic.

'Draco! Draco! Look at me!' Harry slapped Draco's face lightly, but Draco's eyes just began to roll back into his head. 'Shit.'

With considerable effort, Harry lugged Draco's limp body onto the ladder and began shouting at it to go.

'Back! To the reception area! Now! Go! Abra Cadabra! Just go! Please!'

Finally the ladder began to move. Almost as if it were sensing his urgency, it picked up speed and within seconds they had arrived at the reception area. Harry managed to heave Draco's body off of the ladder, but he wasn't strong enough to carry the blonde boy all the way to the couches.

Shouting, Harry called and called for the little man. It took him several minutes, but the pudgy little man finally came running out to see what the matter was.

'Blimey! Wot's all dis yellin' about?' he exclaimed.

'I don't know what happened. One minute he was fine, the next his eyes were rolling backwards!' Harry cried frantically.

'Oh, deary. Oh, deary, deary, deary me,' said the little man, kneeling down to see Draco's now convulsing form.

'What's wrong with him? Can't you do something to help him?'

'Dis is dark magic. I may 'ave bin down 'ere a while, but I knows dark magic when I sees it. Dis is definitely sinister work.'

'But don't you know how to cure him!'

The pudgy man looked at him blankly. 'Sorry, mate. I failed Defense Against the Dark Arts.'

'Shit. I have to get him home. Where is that stupid paper?' Harry began rummaging through Draco's pockets looking for the instructions for the Triton spell to no avail.

'Ya mean dis one?' asked the pudgy man, holding up a folded sheet of paper labeled, 'Triton Spell.'

'Yes. Give it here.' Harry snatched the paper and began to read it. The further down the page he got, the more confused he became. It seemed to involve archaic magic, not to mention some background of dark curses. Clearly, Remus had intended for Draco to perform it.

'Fuck. Do you know how to do a Triton spell?' Harry asked in desperation.

'Yah, I do. But-'

'Will you show me how?'

'I guess so, but you-'

'With all do respect, I need to get home as soon as possible.'

'It's goin' ta take a lot o' work. It ain't an easy spell.'

'Well, unless you have any other ideas, we'd better start now.'

'Dat's wot I bin tryin' ta tell ya! Folla meh.'

'A little help?' Harry asked.

'Oh, right den.' The pudgy man bent down to help Harry carry Draco. To his credit, he was pretty strong for someone who was under four feet tall. He led them down a series of corridors that veered off from his living quarters. When it seemed like they could go no deeper, they came to a big red door labeled, 'Back Door.'

'Dis should take ya back ta whereva ya came from. You did come by 'ere by orb, di'n't you?'

Harry nodded.

'Yep. Den dis'll take ya back. Good luck, laddy.' The pudgy man opened the door and pushed Harry and Draco through. Only at the last moment did it occur to Harry that he didn't even know this man's name and for all they knew, he could be shoving them through another veil. But it was too little too late.

* * *

**A/N:** Lights go out abruptly. All is silent, except for the dripping of a tap. 

I'm gonna try to keep this short...but I've been known to ramble. ;)

There is more coming -- hopefully soon. I've been put under a house arrest, if you will, for the duration of the week and so I plan to get inordinate amounts of writing (both on this fic and my next one). Although, that's the plan. And things never go according to plan, thanks to good old Murphy and his stupid laws, so I doubt that anyone really knows what'll happen. But I will promise I won't keep you waiting too long. The end is in sight and it will be coming to a computer near you soon.

The title of this chapter is a Snow Patrol song.

Three cheers and a round of drinks for anyone who listens to Snow Patrol (or reviews my story)(a cookie if you do both!):  
**suishoku-ketsurui:** I think it would be funny if heaven requireda lot of paper work. It'd be quite fitting, I think. Anyway, glad you liked the chapter and I hope you like this one!  
**volleypickle16:** Thanks so much for consistently reviewing chapters! I'm glad you enjoyed it!  
**Peaceful Angel:** Gloria is an evil, evil lady who loves to scheme. She didn't really want the Potters to do any actual persuading because she assumed that Harry would want to see his parents desperately after having lost them at such a young age. It's a shame things didn't work out for them, but I think Harry made the right choice.  
**fifespice:** you seem to hit it on the dot with every review you leave. I'm thinking maybe I should leave the story up to you! But then what would I do with my time? Hmm, better keep it to myself. . Thanks for reviewing!  
**lilylikeslimes:** KT- Thanks for reviewing...I know you don't like to do it that often. I'm so glad you love it! I'm also glad you love me, although I don't know if I qualify for goddess status.;D I agree in that I think the writing has come a long way from the first few chapters. Hopefully I'll just keep getting better and better. That's what practice is for, right?  
**JitsaruJakara:** I'm glad you've decided to come back to haunt my story. It wouldn't be the same without you! I was dying without electricity, but luckily the rents called someone to come fix it and now a bunch of lights that were broken work, too! It makes me happy to have light inside my house. Light isa good thing. Sometimes. Like I told Peaceful Angel, Lily and James weren't intended to be persuasive in themselves; Gloria just figured that Harry would want to see them more than he would want to go back and fight Voldy.

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**Next Chapter: **Where will Harry and Draco end up? Is it too late to save Draco? And what the hell's wrong with him, anyway?


	17. XVII: The Long Day Is Over

**Loss**

_by Breninblack_

Disclaimer: All belongs to the ever-wonderful JKR.

**Chapter Notes:** _Let's end it on this/give me one more kiss/let's end it on this._ This is it, folks. The last chapter. There will be an epilogue that will hopefully be up this week, but I make no promises. However, after that I will be finished writing this (not so) little fic. I would appreciate it if, when you're finished with the chapter, you made sure to read the author's note at the end (if you don't already do it, anyway). Enjoy the chapter!

* * *

**Chapter Seventeen: The Long Day Is Over**

Harry landed with a thud in a crowded room. He held Draco as he looked around wildly, trying to discern where he was. There were people everywhere around him, some chatting amicably with each other, but most looking utterly confused. There was a gap in the crowd and Harry spotted a familiar bed. With a sudden jolt of realization, he knew that they were in the Room of Requirement and the crowds of people were all the people they had released from the veil.

_Thank God. We're home,_ he thought.

He looked down at Draco and all the relief he had felt at being home quickly faded. Draco was still convulsing in his arms and sweating as if it were a hundred degrees in the room. He needed help and fast. Harry wasn't sure how much longer he'd last.

'If everyone would just be quiet for a moment, I've got an announcement to make,' came a voice over the crowd that Harry recognized as Hermione's. 'I'd like you to sign your names on this sheet. No one's leaving this room until everyone has signed in.'

Pinned on the ground by Draco's dead weight, Harry tried frantically to get Hermione's attention. He shouted for her, but his voice was lost over the din of the crowd. Finally he tugged on the emerald green robes of a man standing closest to him and urged him to get her attention.

'Uh, Miss? There's a young boy here who'd like your attention,' the man called out politely.

'Harry!' Hermione shouted as soon as she saw him. She ran up to him and gave him a hug. 'Thank God you're back! You won't believe what's going on!'

'We haven't got time, Hermione. Something's wrong with Draco.'

Hermione looked down at Draco, who had turned a very pallid shade of white. 'Oh my god, Harry. What happened?'

'I don't know. One minute he was fine and the next he was unresponsive and his eyes were rolling back in his head. This little pudgy man said he thought it was Dark Magic, but I haven't a clue beyond that. We've got to get him to the hospital wing as soon as possible.'

'I'll send Dumbledore an urgent owl,' she said. She began to get up, but Harry yanked her back down.

'We don't have time for a bloody owl. We've got to get him up to the infirmary as soon as possible!'

'We can't, Harry. I'm under strict orders to keep everyone in this room.'

'This is Draco's life we're talking about here. I don't care if you don't like him. I love him and I refuse to let him lie here and die! The rules have never stopped you before, so why should they now?'

'It's not the rules I'm worried about Harry. I wouldn't let Malfoy out of the room even if there weren't any orders.' Harry didn't understand, so Hermione continued. 'Lucius Malfoy showed up a couple of hours ago. He's hell bent on finding his son. He was raving about some kind of dark magic he's got on Draco. He wanted to have some of his house elves patrol the halls, but Dumbledore wouldn't allow it. He managed to get Lucius in his office before he tried anything else, but we've been ordered not to let anyone leave the room until Dumbledore sends word.'

'Fuck. If we don't get Draco some help soon, he's going to die!'

'I have an idea.' Before Harry could ask, Hermione rose and pushed her way through the crowd. When she returned, she was accompanied by a very familiar figure.

Seeing him in the spirit world was one thing, but seeing his Godfather in the flesh - the real, tangible flesh - was another entirely. He wanted to hug him and feel him with his own hands, not with ghostly spirit hands. Unfortunately, there was no time for that now. Reunions would have to wait until later.

'Let's get him onto the bed before we do anything else,' Hermione said. Enlisting the help of some of the people around them, Sirius and two other men gingerly lifted Draco's twitching body over to the bed. As they set him down, a man in stately burgundy robes approached them and spoke:

'I'm a healer from St. Mungo's,' he said. 'I work on the fourth floor - spell damage - and I think I could help, if that was alright with you.'

Harry nodded vigorously. 'Anything you can do for him would be a God sent.'

The healer took his wand out and began checking Draco with a series of spells. As he worked, Sirius, Hermione and Harry decided what to do.

'We can send Sirius out,' Hermione said, speaking barely above a whisper, so as not to be over heard, 'as Snuggles. He can alert Dumbledore of the situation with discretion while we wait. Dumbledore will know what to do.'

Sirius nodded solemnly. It was apparent that he too wanted to reunite with his godson, but he was also aware that there were more pressing matters at hand. Hermione lifted the wards for him and with one last glance at Harry, he left the room.

Sirius Black prowled in the shadows until he was sure there was no one watching. Within seconds, he was no longer a scraggly looking man, but a scraggly looking dog. Taking a back passage he knew from his school days, he quietly crept out of the castle unnoticed.

Once outside, he ventured around to a modest tower near the front of the school. He knew the tower well; the marauders had played tricks on it's occupants many a times. He barked twice and waited in the bushes until he saw a head appear out of the window. Poking his head out of the bushes, he looked up right into the face of Albus Dumbledore.

A smile flourished on Dumbledore's face as Sirius barked again, this time more urgently.

'It's quite nice of you to stop by, Fang,' Dumbledore said with a wink. 'But I'm afraid I'm otherwise engaged at the moment. You might want to watch out on your way back to Hagrid's. I hear you got hold of Severus' slippers again. He will not be happy when you see him about them. I imagine he'll even come visit me about them.'

Sirius barked again and ran off around the side of the castle. Going in the way he came out, Sirius reentered the castle and made his way down to the dungeons. He scratched on the door of Snape's office and hoped to God that he didn't have a class full of Slytherins. The last thing they needed right now was a bunch of moffaty first years writing home to their Death Eater parents telling them of a big, shaggy black dog that came to their class that day.

The door opened and Snape appeared, looking quite annoyed. 'My office hours are clearly posted and I have made it clear I have no time for disruptions,' he said before even looking to see who was at the door. He looked around for a moment, irritated, before he thought to look down at Sirius.

'Christ. I thought we got rid of you for good,' he said disdainfully. Sirius bared his teeth and pushed his way through the door. Snape look disgustedly at the dog hair that had clung to his pristine black robes and then to Sirius. 'Do tell why you have decided to _grace_ me with your presence.'

'Dumbledore sent me,' Sirius said, with a long suffering sigh.

'Ah, but of course. I risk my life day in and day out teaching these invidious little brats, yet he still insists on raising my blood pressure by sending me...mangy animals.'

Sirius glowered at Snape. 'Feel free to drop dead at any moment. Believe me, I'm not going to stand in you way. In fact, if there's anything I can do to speed up the process, do let me know. I would be beside myself to help.'

Snape scoffed disgustedly and rolled his eyes. 'What do you want, Black?'

'One of your house members is dying and his father is on a rampage to kill him faster.'

'And he needs me why?'

'How the bloody hell should I know? Maybe he wants you to gas Malfoy to death with the horrible smell you've got about you.'

'At least I don't have fleas,' Snape said sharply.

'At least I wash my hair more than once every twenty years,' Sirius retorted.

'At least I wasn't fucking a werewolf!'

'At least he loved me! You could never say the same for Lily. She detested you and you still followed her around like she was fucking Morgana herself.'

Snape had his wand out faster than Sirius could blink. With a swift movement, Sirius was suspended in the air as if an invisible hand was clasped around his throat, holding him there.

'Don't go there, Black.'

'Look at you, Severus,' Sirius said in short gasps. 'She's been dead for over 15 years and you've still got a sore spot for her. Have you been saving yourself all these years? Cause I've got news for you: they're not coming back.'

Snape slammed Sirius against the wall, knocking his head on the stone. 'If I recall correctly,' Snape began, 'you weren't the only one with unrequited love. You seemed to have the hots for Potter.'

'And he had the hots for Lily. It wasn't meant to work. Unlike you, I moved on.'

'And settled for second best, eh? I bet he's not even that good,' Snape said maliciously.

'Don't you fucking _talk_ about Remus,' Sirius managed to growl.

'I hear his dick's all shriveled,' Snape continued. 'I hope you didn't come back for him. He won't be able to get it up for you anymore. A side effect of the Wolfsbane, you know. It won't matter anymore anyway. He's done with you. First with losing you to Azkaban, then to the veil. Did you really think he'd wait that long?'

Sirius stopped struggling and Snape's hex faltered. Sirius fell to the floor with a thud, but slowly picked himself up off the floor.

'Dumbledore wants to see you in his office. You'd do best to hurry,' he said, before he slammed the door behind himself.

€€€€€

In the Room of Requirement, Draco's condition was worsening. For a few minutes, he came to and was able to speak, albeit incoherently. Harry thought he might have heard the words 'hark' and 'fly,' but he couldn't be sure.

Hermione had taken charge and begun to try to make some order of the 44 people who were stranded in the room. She had just taken roll when Remus showed up.

'Oh my,' he said when he entered the crowded room. 'I would have come sooner if I had known you had your hands full. Have Harry and Draco returned?'

Hermione gestured to the bed.

Remus went over to the bed immediately. Harry was lying next to Draco's comatose body, stroking his boyfriend's hair.

'How is he, Harry?' Remus asked quietly.

Harry's eyes were red and swollen when he looked up. 'He's in a coma and that his vitals are dangerously low. If they sink any lower, he'll die.'

'I'm so sorry, Harry. Do you know why?'

'There's a healer from St. Mungo's who says it's extremely advanced dark magic, but beyond that no one knows.'

'Excuse me, do you mind if I take his vitals?' asked the man in burgundy robes.

'Sure, Mathais,' Harry said.

'Why don't we go talk?' Remus said. Harry agreed and they searched the room for a quiet corner. There were none, as Hermione had been conjuring chairs and couches up the wazoo and every place had become occupied. Remus pointed to the kitchenette and they both sat down on the floor.

Neither of the men said anything for a while. Harry closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the cupboards.

'I saw my mum and dad,' Harry said with his eyes still closed.

'What?' Remus asked, looking sharply at his young friend. With the Malfoy boy needing to be sent to St. Mungo's, the last thing they needed was to check a bed for Harry, too.

'The orb sent us to heaven first. We were waiting for this woman to take us to the VEST--'

'VEST?'

'Veil Ejection and Storage Tank is what the sign said.'

'Right. Keep going.'

'Well, this lady -- her name was Gloria -- was off doing something and they were just standing there, talking. I couldn't believe it. The only thing I've ever really wanted and then she stopped me. She led me away and that was it. I suppose you don't believe me, do you?'

Remus chose his words carefully: 'I believe you really want to see your parents. And I believe that Lily and James are in heaven. But are you sure you were actually there?'

'Yes.' Harry didn't argue as vehemently as he might have if his boyfriend wasn't lying near death across the room. But something in the way he spoke made Remus think it wasn't just a product of his tired and grief-addled brain.

'I could have stayed. I almost did. But Draco wouldn't let me.'

'You did a good thing, Harry, giving these people their lives back. It takes a lot of courage to do a selfless thing like that.'

'They seemed sad to see me,' Harry stated, almost as a question.

'Lily and James sacrificed their lives for you. They wouldn't want to see you waste what they died to protect just to see you.'

Suddenly, there was a loud commotion from across the room. Harry and Remus popped their heads over the kitchenette counter to see what all the bother was about. A tall blonde man was struggling to get out of the grasp of two men who were holding him back. Standing not far behind him was an shorter elderly man who was attempting to calm him down.

'I'll kill that bastard. I'll fucking kill him!' the young blonde man was shouting. Harry jumped up from behind the counter and ran to the blonde man.

'Søren! Søren! Stop!' Harry yelled. 'What are you doing?'

'My father did this! I know he did!'

'Søren, calm down.'

'The boy's not going to listen,' said the elderly man behind them. 'He's just as stubborn as you.'

'There's nothing we can do!'

'Yes, there is! I can go out there and rip him to shreds!'

'How do you plan to do that?' Harry asked. 'He's twice your size and you have no wand. How long do you think it would take him to obliterate you? Next to nothing. He almost did it before, but something tells me he'd be a hell of a lot more careful this time around.'

Søren stopped struggling and sank down into the nearest chair. 'He's a monster. He's killing his own son with that exact intention. He's the one who should be killed.'

'If you go kill him,' said the elderly man, 'you become just as bad as him.'

'Gus is right,' Harry added.

'I feel so useless just sitting here, doing nothing.'

'You think I don't?' Harry asked incredulously. 'He means just as much to me as he does to you, just in different ways. The only thing we can do for Draco is to lie low and wait until we hear from Dumbledore.'

'Speaking of whom...' Remus trailed off, looking toward the entrance to the room.

'Harry, my boy. It's good to see that you have returned to us. And you've completed your mission as well. I'm proud of you.'

Dumbledore turned to Søren and extended his hand. 'It's been far too long. I see the years have had no effect on you, though I daresay they have not been so kind to me.'

Søren shook the headmaster's hand. 'Sir, my brother's sick. He needs help.'

'It has all been sorted out. A team of healers from St. Mungo's will arrive any moment. I can assure that they will take the best care of your brother.'

'But my father...healer's won't help if he's still cursing Draco.'

'I am happy to make the announcement that Lucius Malfoy has been arrested and placed in Azkaban for an unknown duration until he can be tried and his fate determined.'

Harry was not sure there could have been better news. If only Draco could hear this. 'How?'

'In his rage, he broke a rememberall I had received as a gift some years back. I called the ministry on property damage,' Dumbledore said with a smirk. 'It gave the Aurors a chance to search the Malfoy Manor, whereupon they found a number of incriminating articles and have found legitimate reasons to put him away for what I hope is forever.

'Pending the stripping of his wand, all curses in place should be ineffective and annulled. Young Master Malfoy will return to his normal self in no time.'

'What about us?' called someone from the back of the room.

'I have called a full meeting for the Order of the Phoenix, to start in an hours time in my office. If you'd like, you can all follow me up there for tea and biscuits.'

The general population of the room rose and followed Dumbledore out of the room, leaving Søren, Remus, Harry and Hermione.

'I'll be going, I think,' Hermione said, starting toward the door. 'Ron will want to be updated.'

'Will you and Ron come by later? There's something I need to tell you guys,' Harry said, giving Hermione a hug. As they embraced he whispered in her ear: 'I don't know what I'd do without you, Mione. Thank you.'

'Anything for my best friend, regardless of who he's kissing on dark fields,' she whispered back, before slipping out the door.

'What the bloody hell are you all doing just standing over there?' came a gravely voice from the bed. Harry, Søren and Remus turned around to see Draco trying to sit up by himself. 'Get your sorry, weepy arses over here and help me up!'

Harry grinned. He wasn't sure he'd ever been this happy.

€€€€€

Remus slipped out of the room and walked right into someone. He began to mutter his apologies when he smelled something he had not smelled in almost a year.

It was a smell of ginger and motorbike oil.

Remus gripped the shirt of the person he had run into and almost beat him. 'Don't you _ever_ fucking do that to me again, Sirius Black. I would never be able to forgive you.'

Sirius looked at Remus closely as if he wasn't sure what was happening.

'Aren't you going to hug me? Kiss me maybe?' Remus asked, looking into Sirius' eyes.

'Oh, Moony...I thought...Snape said...' Sirius embraced Remus and kissed him so hard that he literally took the other man's breath away.

'When are you going to learn that everything Severus Snape will ever say to you is an attempt to rile you up ?' Remus asked after they parted lips, gasping for breath.

'Never,' Sirius said with a proud grin.

'Good. I wouldn't have it any other way.'

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A/N: Being this the last chapter, I'd like to say a few things. I would like to profusely thank the wonderful people who have stuck by me through the shitty beginning chapters, all the way to chapter 17! It means the world to me and I hope that you all will continue to read my work in the future. 

Speaking of future work...There (most likely) will not be a sequel to this fic, but the odds of me writing more H/D are relatively high. I have started two new longer fics (a marauders era one and a post-war HP/DM one) and have ideas for a few more. However, only one will make the cut. I would love to hear your input on what you might be interested in reading!

Thanks again for sticking by my humble little story and I! I really appreciate that you appreciate it.

(The title of this chapter is a Norah Jones song).

Say goodbye on a night like this if it's the last thing you ever do:  
**fifespice:** I was very tempted to let Harry just stay in heaven and end the story there, but that wouldn't have been very nice, huh? Good thing I didn't. Draco wouldn't have made it either if he had stayed.  
** volleypickle16:** thanks for the review!  
**Suicidal Bunnies:** No more waiting on the edge of your seat for you! Here is another chapter! Hooray! Sadly, it's the last one (if you don't count the epilogue). But I'll be writing more stories, so be sure to watch for them! (P.S. - I love your name!)  
**PrOnGs Da GrEaT:** Hey, glad you decided to read my fic! I'm happy that yet another person enjoys it! It just warms my heart (and my toes...they've been cold lately .).  
**caltha:** I agree that the Pearly Gates require much exclamation points and question marks. I had that kind of moment when I was writing. All of the sudden there they were in front of those gates and I was like 'omg! how did they get THERE!' Thanks for the review!  
**Silvermane1:** THANKS  
**suishoku-ketsurui:** Sorry it took me so long to update this chapter, but I hope you enjoyed it. I'm super glad you loved the last one, though!  
**Nio Rein:** you make me laugh! I 'luff' Sirius, too. When I read OotP and got to that fateful chapter, I literally slammed the book shut and stopped reading. I was so close to the end, but I couldn't do it because I was so mad at JKR. I've forgiven her, but only because Ilove her too much. I still think she should bring him back. Maybe she will. I shouldn't get my hopes up, though, should I?

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**Next Chapter: **The Epilogue (read: how everything turns out).


	18. XVIII: The Epilogue

**Loss**

_by Breninblack_

Disclaimer: All belongs to the ever-wonderful JKR.

**Chapter Notes:** Here it is. The Epilogue. I'm going to try not to cry!

* * *

'Scoot over!'

'I did scoot over! You scoot over!'

'Excuse me. Would you be a dear and scootch down just a bit? There's not quite enough room for us here.'

'Scoot down. She wants to sit here.'

'There's no where to scoot!'

'Then stand!'

'You stand. I don't want to stand!'

'Boys! Stand or you won't get supper for a week.'

'Hate to break it to you, Mother Dearest--'

'--but we don't live in your house anymore.'

'We cook our own supper--'

'--in our own kitchen--'

'--with our own knives--'

'--and forks--'

'I get the picture. But regardless of where you do your cooking with whomever's utensils you choose to use, I am still your mother and you still have to do what I say when in my presence!'

Harry chuckled as Fred and George made a huge show of laboriously getting out of their seats and standing behind Harry.

'Hey, Mum--'

'--how come Ron gets to sit?'

'Because those two still give her nightmares,' Ron muttered to Harry, who did his best to suppress a laugh.

'He's the next to go,' Molly said, eyeing Ron suspiciously.

'Ahem. If I may have your attention, we can begin.'

A blanket of silvery hush fell over the overcrowded room as Dumbledore stood at the front of the room. He tapped his wand to his throat before beginning again:

'Welcome, ladies and gentlemen. I apologize for the lack of space this evening, but I'm sure you understand the importance of this location.

'As you may have noticed, we have recently acquired some new faces to the Order. Some of them you may recognize, and others you may not. But all of them have agreed to join our ranks in the fight against Voldemort.

'You may be curious as to where we recruited these new members and I am happy to inform you that they come to us as the result of a very perilous mission carried out by two of our own students. These two students made a brave journey beyond the realms of life and death to rescue these new members, who had all fallen victim to the nefarious devices known as Death Veils.

'Of these new members, there are two I would like to introduce to you personally.' Dumbledore nodded to Søren and Gus and the pair walked up to the front of the room.

'I would like you to meet Søren Malfoy and his partner, Wolfgang de Gauss.'

There was a collective gasp around the room at the sight of a Malfoy. Harry's jaw had dropped in surprise and he saw that Remus had a similarly shocked expression.

'I doubt that many of you will remember Mr Malfoy. He attended school here at Hogwarts through his final year and was Head Boy of his class. Shortly after he graduated he disappeared, much to the confusion of everyone. His parents requested that he be forgotten and everyone moved on without another thought.

'However, there is more to the story. Until recently the circumstances surrounding Mr Malfoy's disappearance remained a mystery. But it has come to light that this young man disappeared at the hands of his father, Lucius Malfoy, by means of a Death Veil, all for refusing to take the Dark Mark. I have a feeling he will be a great asset to the Order and I hope that you will welcome him as one of our own.'

The room was awkwardly silent for a moment, everyone unsure of what to do. Harry and Sirius began to clap loudly. Remus and Molly, Arthur and the twins were the next to join suit and soon the whole room was applauding.

'Let's not forget our other inductee,' Dumbledore said and the room quieted down. 'Wolfgang de Gauss is a name I'm sure none of you know. I myself had not heard it until just a few weeks ago. Mr de Gauss is a prominent figure from the 1500s, most famously known for his invention of the first Death Veil. He, too, will be a very valuable asset to the Order and I wish for you to do the same for him as you will for all of our new members.'

Søren and Gus sat down and Dumbledore cleared his throat again. The fervent whispering died down immediately.

'I have one more general announcement before we bring out the tea and biscuits.

'We have one more person to introduce. He is a honourary member, if you will, that will be joining us in less than a years time. I have a feeling that at first you may be shocked, some of you angered even, but I trust you that this young man means no harm or foul to us.

'Draco, would you please come out here?'

Draco stepped out from a dark corner and next to Dumbledore. There was no need for further introduction. Unlike with his brother, there was no confusion or ignorance as to who this young man was because, much to his dismay, Draco Malfoy was the spitting image of his father.

There was a silence. Not one person made a noise and no one dared move. There was an ill mixture of distaste and distrust in the air that was stifling.

Draco shifted uncomfortably. Dumbledore cast a meaningful glance over the room. Finally, Harry could not stand it.

'I would trust Draco with my life and I have. If I trust him and Dumbledore trusts him, it should be enough for the rest of you.' Harry rose from his seat and stood next to Draco. Slowly, he entwined his fingers with Draco.

It took a moment, but it finally came: a slow trickle at first, but soon the whole room was clapping. The whole room, except Ronald Weasley.

€€€€€

When the meeting had finally ended, Dumbledore had directed them to an empty classroom, furnished with chairs and refreshments. After have politely accepted many well wishings from various Order members, Draco stood with Remus and Sirius by the door.

'Draco, if you ever need anything, Moony and I are here for you,' Sirius said, clapping him on the back. 'I mean, if it weren't for you, I wouldn't be. Emotionally or physically.'

'Thank you, Mr Black--'

'WHAT DID YOU JUST CALL ME?' Sirius barked.

'Uh, Mr Black?'

'Settle, Padfoot. He was only trying to be polite,' Remus said. Turning to Draco, 'He hates being called Mr Black. Has a problem with authority, this one. So I try to use the name frequently, just to see him get riled up. Feel free to use it if ever you're bored.'

Draco chortled. Sirius fumed and grabbed Remus' ass, causing him to leap up and yelp.

'We'll see who does the riling up,' Sirius said with a smirk.

'Now, now. I'm going to have to be the responsible adult here and tell you to save it for the bedroom. No one wants to see that here. Have you happened to have seen Harry?'

'I thought he and Ron were out in the corridor,' Sirius said.

As if on cue, shouting could be heard from the corridor: 'WHAT THE BLOODY HELL DO YOU MEAN YOU'RE SHAGGING THE FERRET?

'NO! I WILL NOT QUIET DOWN. THIS IS NOT SOMETHING TO BE QUIET ABOUT! THIS IS...THIS IS...HE'S GOT YOU UNDER THE IMPERIUS, HASN'T HE! I'LL KILL HIM, I WILL.'

'RON, WOULD YOU SHUT UP FOR ONE BLOODY SECOND?'

'NO! HARRY, THIS IS THE FERRET WE'RE TALKING ABOUT HERE! YOU ARE MY BEST FRIEND AND YOU MEAN A LOT TO ME, BUT I WON'T LET YOU SIT HERE AND TELL ME YOU _WANT_ TO BUGGER THE FERRET!'

'IT'S NOT ABOUT THE SEX, RON! I LOVE HIM!'

Draco smiled. He started to go out into the corridor, but Remus stopped him.

'Give them a couple minutes,' he said.

A couple minutes turned out to be eons. After the shouting died down, Draco slowly made his way out to the corridor.

'Is everything alright?' Draco asked tentatively.

Ron looked up. 'Oh. It's you,' he said disgustedly.

'Oh, yeah. Ron here's just being a prat, but otherwise, everything's spiffy.'

'Anything I can do to help?' Draco asked.

'Yeah. You can stop buggering my best friend.' Ron glared at Draco.

'Look, Weasel, no one said I like this any more than you. I love Harry, but that doesn't mean I have to like you. I respect the fact that he comes with the attachments of you and Granger. I don't like it, but I respect it. As his best friend, you should consider doing the same.'

Ron looked at Draco with narrowed eyes and his head and neck scrunched up in a way that sort of reminded Draco of a chicken. It seemed the Weasel was trying to think and it appeared to be having rather stressful effects on him.

'Alright. I'll play nice, he said after a moment. 'But only if you promise something.'

'Depends on what it is.'

'You promise to leave Hermione alone. No more of that mudblood bollocks.'

'That's all? Deal.' Draco stuck out his hand and Ron grudgingly accepted it. 'Just curious - why so protective of Granger?'

Ron kicked around some imaginary dirt. 'I...um...uh...you're not going to make me say it, are you?'

'I have absolutely no idea what on earth you could possibly be talking about,' Draco said with a mock innocence.

'I'mgonnaaskhertomarrymewhenwe'redonewithschool,' Ron said quietly.

'What was that? I couldn't quite hear.'

'I'm going to ask her to marry me when we're done with school!' Ron nearly shouted.

'My dear, Weasel. If you can't admit to that, you've got bigger problems on your hands.'

Ron glared at Malfoy, and then turned to Harry. 'I don't know _what_ you see in him. I'll see you later, though, right?'

'Sure thing,' Harry said. 'Hey, Ron? Thanks. It means the world to me.'

'Well, whatever makes you happy,' Ron said with a shrug as he walked away.

'Look at him, the ungrateful arse. Acting like it was his idea!' Draco scoffed as soon as Ron was out of ear shot.

Harry hit him on the shoulder playfully. 'Now you stop that! It means a lot to me that he's willing to look past his differences, _regardless of who's idea it was._'

The two boys rejoined the biscuits and tea crowd in the no-longer-empty classroom, only to find Sirius and Remus poking and proding each other.

'What on earth are you two doing?' Harry asked.

'He started it!' Remus cried.

'Damn straight! And I'm going to finish it, too!' Sirius chirruped.

'You do know that everyone's starting at you, right?' Draco said, leaning in to whisper to Remus.

Remus immediately straightened up and brushed his robes off. Sirius glared at Draco and muttered something that sound suspiciously like 'spoilsport.'

'You two kids seem to be having quite a bit of fun over here,' came a voice from behind them. The four turned around to see Gus hobbling over to them, rubbing his leg. 'Wish I could join in, but this damn leg seems to have gotten rusty since I last used it.'

'Which was some 400 odd years ago,' Harry remarked. 'Why didn't you tell us who you were?'

'Would it have made a difference if I had?' Gus said dismissively. 'All you would have wanted to do was pick my brain about those ruddy veils and since I was going to come back anyway, I figured I'd save my breath until everyone was around to hear.'

'But how did you know you were going to get rescued?' Harry asked.

'There was something about you. When I found you prowling around the cabin, I knew you were going to be the one to bring us back.'

'You should speak with that Trewlaney bird, you should,' Sirius commented.

'Now, Gus, you're not boring them, are you?' Søren asked as he came up behind. 'We only just got here. We wouldn't want them to revoke their invitation to stay.'

Gus slapped Søren on the shoulder, but Søren quickly sidestepped and kissed the considerably shorter Gus on the forehead. Gus just shook his head and muttered, 'Kids these days.'

There was a momentary silence where everyone just looked at each other, quietly acknowledging the struggles each of them had gone through to get to this point. It had been a long, rough year, but they had made it out alive.

'So what now?' Draco asked.

'Now...we wait,' Remus said.

'My favorite part,' Sirius said sarcastically.

'There's nothing else we can do,' Harry said. 'We have to wait for Voldemort to make a move or for Dumbledore to come up with a plan, whichever comes first.'

'Until then, I would presume we prepare,' Søren said.

'For what?' Draco asked, even though he knew.

'For war.'

* * *

AHHH! It's over! I can't believe it! It's so depressing. I have grown so attached to this story that I am very sad to see it over. I thank you all profusely for reading and staying along with the story – each and everyone of you (yes, I mean YOU) means the world to me. Thank you thank you thank you thank you!

As for my next project...I'm stumped. I was planning on writing a Marauder's era fic, but I'm not so sure anymore. I would love to keep writing Harry/Draco, but I sort of want to move onto a new ship, just for a change of scenery. So as for a conclusive answer to the question of what will I do next...well, you've come to the wrong place for conclusive answers. I'm just no good at those. But keep your eyes open because something new will be coming soon. I can promise that much.

Once again, thank you so much for reading my fic!

The last goodbye to my wonderful reviewers:  
**Suicidal Bunnies:** The end of an era, indeed! I was thinking about maybe doing a sequel, but I have no idea what I'd do for it. We'll see. . Thanks so much for sticking by the story through the end! Much love!  
**fifespice:** Sadly, you're right. Good things must end at some point. I don't know that it would be much good if I kept goingbecause the story's kind of ended. Oh well. Thanks so much for reading and diligently reviewing! I appreciate it a lot!  
**PrOnGs Da GrEaT:** I didn't have the heart to kill Draco. Besides, what fun would that have been? Harry would have just gotten all mopey again and Harry's much better when he's not mopey, I think. Glad you liked the story!  
**suishoku-ketsurui:** You're absolutely welcome! I'm glad that you really liked this story. It started out as a tribute to Sirius that I was mildly interested in into something that I am dearly fond of and quite overprotective. You can definetly expect to see more fics from me in the future...but I'm not sure when. Keep an eye out! Thanks so much for reading and reviewing through this whole story!  
**JaklynToki:** You have a new name! I love that quote! It's absolutely perfect! Thank you thank you thank you for reviewing and being such an awesome fanfic friend! I'm so happy that you liked the story! Love you!  
**Peaceful Angel:** Gloria is evil, but let me tell you, she was SO much fun to write! I think Jo's said that, too, that the evil characters are much more fun to write. I'm positive that Harry would have gone to his parents, which makes me sad, but I guess it's understandable. I agree about Draco, too. He does need to be the center of attention. I think it was the way he was brought up. Thank you so much for reviewing through out the story! It means a lot to me!

Peace out, everyone!  
--Bren

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**Thank you everyone!**


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